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CDA asked to evaluate CUC privatization
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Posted on Mar 25 2006
The Fitial administration has asked the Commonwealth Development Authority’s board to evaluate the possibility of a privatized Commonwealth Utilities Corp., according to CDA chair Tom Glenn A. Quitugua.
This took place when the CDA board still had a quorum, shortly before members were asked to resign their posts recently.
“We discussed it when we had a quorum. It’s one of the issues that we looked at regarding CUC,” said Quitugua in an interview.
Quitugua earlier disclosed that Lt. Gov. Tim P. Villagomez met with the CDA board, urging them to sit down with CUC and help it resolve its financial problems.
A major agenda is the settlement of the outstanding debt of CUC with CDA, amounting to $45.5 million in principal amount.
As instructed by Villagomez, CDA and CUC began their negotiations, which Quitugua said also involved “proposed solutions” to CUC’s financial woes.
Discussions with CUC stopped abruptly after four CDA board members tendered their resignations as requested by Gov. Benigno R. Fitial. They are Marcie Tomokane, Pedro Itibus, Edwin Hofschneider, and Vincent Calvo.
Meantime, Villagomez was recently reported to be pushing for privatization of CUC power generation as a solution to the current power crisis.
CUC privatization almost took place last year during the Babauta administration but it was later shelved following criticisms from some sectors, including the political opposition.
Then opposition leader House Speaker Fitial had likewise criticized the previous administration’s emergency control and reprogramming of funds for CUC.
Shortly after he took office, Fitial reinstated emergency control of CUC and received blanket reprogramming authority from the Legislature to address the CUC crisis.
Fitial controls the leadership of the present Legislature.
