Muña says CUC customers actually subsidizing gov’t

Former Commonwealth Utilities Corp. grant writer Candice Muña bared that the CNMI utilities company essentially uses the Fuel Adjustment Charge to subsidize what the government owes CUC.

“They just kept changing the name. So, it ended up now as the Fuel Adjustment charge, right? But yes, now they’re making the customers think that this is our fuel charge, when, in fact, we are paying a portion of the government’s dues,” she said while serving as guest speaker of Marianas Business Network’s town hall meeting held last Wednesday at Last Shot Bar.

Muña also jokingly said that since she whistle-blew, she has essentially become CUC’s No. 1 customer service representative.

Muña, who was terminated last Oct. 17, also shared some insights abot her six-month tenure at CUC, highlighting CUC’s power structure and financial mismanagement.

“I’m not speaking as a CUC employee, because, as you know, I was terminated on Oct. 17. I think that was like for me probably the most popularized termination in the CNMI… I’m not speaking as a current CUC employee, but I am going to share everything that I learned while I was there the past six months. It didn’t take me very long to find out a lot, to learn a lot about everything, about the power structure, about how much power CUC has, how much money, and also about the many things that [they’re] keeping secret from the people of the CNMI, especially the ways the people of the CNMI have been paying, not only financially paying for mismanagement, but also paying through their health and well-being,” she said.

Muña recounted her journey as a grant writer, as she highlighted the research and grant writing process, including a $25-million grant for revamping power plants and adopting renewable energy.

“I started CUC on April 24, 2024…Within those six months, I did three large grants. One of them was a $25-million grant to revamp our power plants here in the CNMI, we have these really old, noncompliant gensets that are basically on the verge of breaking down, and the engineers and the mechanical engineers of the plant are basically keeping them alive by creating these spare parts that are obsolete. So, we have those. And then we, you know, we need to adopt renewable energy. And that’s another subject that I witnessed over at CUC,” she said.

She criticized the lack of support for renewable energy within CUC and mentioned the $645,000 grant for the solar farm design that was awarded but not utilized.

She also shared her experience at a clean energy proclamation signing, expressing frustration over CUC’s avoidance of renewable energy initiatives.

Moreover, she discussed the issue of contracting within CUC, noting that contracts are kept confidential and awarded to the same vendors repeatedly.

She also emphasized the importance of transparency and due process, criticizing the lack of rule of law and due process within CUC.

She commended Rep. Vincent Aldan (Ind-Sapan), who was also present during the town hall meeting for the passage of a bill to, in a way, reestablish the Commonwealth Public Utilities Commission.

Muña, who didn’t present any documents to prove her claims during the town hall, expressed her faith in the local government and the importance of holding CUC accountable through local channels rather than going directly to the federal government. She emphasized the need for transparency and due process within CUC, reiterating the importance of following the rule of law.

Meanwhile, John Oliver Gonzales, who is running for U.S delegate, said that he attended the town hall meeting to listen and get information and ignite the public outcry started by Muña.

“On behalf of the silent, the voiceless, employees have been manipulated within CUC. So tomorrow (CUC board meeting last Thursday), 100% absolutely hands down, I’ll be there at the CUC meeting. I want to listen. I want to get information. I want to get the data and I’m ready,” he said.