A proposed joint venture involving South Cotabato II Electric Cooperative (SOCOTECO II) is facing renewed scrutiny, with ACT Teachers Rep. Antonio Tinio joining a call for a House inquiry into what the deal could mean for the cooperative’s member-consumer-owners.
Tinio said he has co-authored House Resolution 1401, filed by General Santos City Rep. Shirlyn Bañas-Nograles. The measure asks the House Committee on Energy to examine SOCOTECO II’s conditional agreement with Ignite Power and Energy Corporation, including how the partner was selected, how cooperative assets were valued and whether members received enough information before being asked to approve the deal. It also seeks to assess the potential effects on electricity rates and service.
“We must scrutinize this deal down to its finest print,” Tinio said. He warned that electric cooperatives should serve the communities that built them, rather than become a means for large business interests to gain control of public utilities.
His warning is an objection to the proposed arrangement, not a finding of wrongdoing. The resolution itself says the concerns it raises warrant a fact-based inquiry but do not establish a legal violation.
The dispute has also reached public schools. The DepEd division in General Santos City terminated its division-level agreement covering the use of school facilities for the SOCOTECO II plebiscite. School heads may still assess requests to use their facilities under existing rules, while participation by teaching and non-teaching personnel must be voluntary. Tinio urged DepEd to give teachers and school heads clear guidance amid concerns about their possible legal exposure.
For Tinio, the central question is whether SOCOTECO II’s members can make a fair and informed decision about an agreement that may reshape the cooperative’s future. “It is the member-consumer-owners who stand to lose or gain the most from this deal,” he said.
