Joker raps PSALM over TransCo bidding

Sen. Joker Arroyo reprimanded the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. (PSALM) yesterday for refusing to disclose information about the three qualified bidders for the National Transmission Corp. (TransCo).

Arroyo, chairman of the Senate committee on public services and a member of the Joint Congressional Power Commission, said he asked PSALM for the ownership structure of each of the three qualified bidders as part of the responsibilities of Congress.

But PSALM, as expected, told Arroyo that the confidentiality agreement between them and the bidders prohibits it from declaring the identities of those who make up the companies awarded the right to bid.

"TransCo is owned by the government 100 percent, ergo, it is owned 100 percent by the public. Bidding it out must be transparent 100 percent because it is taxpayers’ money involved," Arroyo said in a statement.

PSALM president Nieves Osorio recently announced that three investor groups have passed the financial and technical criteria for the Dec. 20 bidding for 25-year contract to run TransCo.

This would be the fourth attempt by the government to privatize its power transmission network since 2003.

"True, there is such a thing as confidentiality provisions in bidding contracts. They are fairly common when it involves transactions between one private company and another private company. But not when it involves public funds," Arroyo said.

"PSALM went beyond its powers by binding itself to a confidentiality agreement that forbids Congress from even asking the identities of the people behind the corporate bidders," he added.

Arroyo reminded PSALM about the $525-million sale of the Masinloc power facility to the YNN Pacific-Ranhill Berhad consortium, which he said "failed miserably."

He recalled that Masinloc was awarded to the company with a paid-in capital of only P800,000 whose office was located at a warehouse without any desk.

"TransCo is worth four times that. P100 billion. And Congress cannot have a peep as to who are the bidders? Who can peep and who can know? Only a select few," Arroyo said.

Arroyo emphasized that the privatization of Transco will be the biggest transaction ever in Philippine history so all the more reason that Congress should be informed about its details.