ADVERTISEMENT
Cusi claims company offered P50M for PNOC-EC to match Udenna's takeover of Chevron in Malampaya
By TED CORDERO,GMA NewsEnergy Secretary Alfonso Cusi on Wednesday bared that he was approached by a company to fund state-run Philippine National Oil Company-Exploration Corp. (PNOC) matching Udenna's offer to take over Chevron's stakes in the Malampaya project in favor of the said firm.
“The person came to my office trying to say, 'I will fund the PNOC requirement to match the Udenna offer and you deliver it to me',” Cusi said in an ANC interview.
“That offer to fund the acquisition of Chevron to PNOC-EC, sabi ko diyan [I said] we cannot do that, kalaboso lahat tayo riyan [we will all go to jail for that]. In fact, [they] offered P50 million to do that," he said.
The Energy chief did not name the company. “Let them come out if they want to,” he said.
Cusi is facing a graft complaint
ADVERTISEMENT
The complainants - Balgamel de Belen Domingo, Rodel Rodis, and Loida Nicolas Lewis - alleged that Cusi and other respondents conspired to give “unwarranted benefits and advantage” to Uy’s Udenna Corp. and its subsidiary, UC Malampaya, in the sale of Chevron’s share and transfer of rights in the Malampaya project, “thereby causing undue injury to the Government.”
In particular, the complainants argued that the government, through the PNOC-EC, should have matched Udenna’s offer which they said was a “very profitable opportunity” for the state that “currently struggles with raising revenues in the past months to address the country's widening budget deficit…”
Cusi reiterated that the complaint was a “harassment” and that he knows who is really behind the “politically motivated” charges.
“In due time that will come out because this is pure harassment, this is political,” he said.
Cusi went on to say that the Udenna-Chevron transaction was legal and it even underwent a review by the Philippine Competition Commission. —KBK, GMA News