Group questions 'hasty' processing of franchise for firm led by Legarda's son

The Anti-Trapo Movement of the Philippines, Inc. on Sunday questioned the "seemingly hasty" approval of a Senate panel report recommending the granting of a 25-year franchise for  Solar Para sa Bayan Corporation (SPBC).

"Senators, notably the leaders and members of the ethics committee, might have opened themselves up to serious questions on probity and indifference to public sensibility on account of their seemingly hasty approval of a committee report recommending the grant of a government franchise to a son of Senator  Loren Legarda," the group said in an emailed statement.

The House of Representatives in December 2018 approved House Bill 8179 on third and final reading, paving the way for Solar’s authority to build, install, establish, operate, and maintain distributable power technologies and mini-grid systems across the country.

A similar measure is pending before the Senate, and is now being questioned by the Anti-Trapo Movement (ATM), as Solar is owned and operated by Leandro Leviste, the son of Legarda.

The ATM earlier filed an ethics complaint against Senator Legarda before the Senate Committee on Ethics, headed by Senator Emmanuel "Manny" Pacquiao, as well as the Presidential Anti-Corruption Commission (PACC).

"Prior to the Senate acting on the subject Leviste's franchise application, we respectfully submit that the Senate Committee on Ethics and Privileges must first come to a determination whether a franchise application that will directly benefit the son of a sitting senator... will be in the nature of violation of the constitutional prohibition under Section 14 of Article VI of the Philippine Constitution," ATM said in its Senate ethics complaint.

This was mirrored on the statement of ATM on Sunday, which said that stakeholders of the energy sector have already raised objections.

"Majority of the domestic power industry players have raised vigorous objections to the measure, saying Leviste’s plan to set up solar panel projects across the country was not only viable but could also be potentially injurious to the electricity generation sector in general," it said.

"They specifically questioned Sen. Manny Pacquiao’s propriety, saying it was ironic for him to vote in favor of the committee report in utter disregard of the ATM’s petition for the conduct of a Senate probe on Leviste’s franchise bid," it added.

For its part, the PACC, through Commissioner Greco Belgica, said that the complaint was received by the agency on January 4, and is now undergoing evaluation.

On criticisms that his mother’s status and political influence are paving the way for a congressional franchise, Leviste earlier said that he and the corporation “have taken it upon ourselves to doubly prove the merit of this application” as a result. —Jon Viktor Cabuenas/LBG, GMA News