Central Negros Electric Cooperative board members yesterday elected businessman Roberto Montelibano acting president of the coop following the preventive suspension of five of their colleagues.

The National Electrification Administration placed under a 30-day preventive suspension board president Eddie Guillem, board vice president Jobert Tagobader, secretary Gregorio Duremdes, and treasurer Gerardo Solas, and officer-in-charge Noriel Bermudez, pending the resolution of the administrative charges they are facing before NEA.

The order, issued by the NEA Board of Administrators headed by Energy Secretary Raphael Lotilla, came almost five months after the NEA Administrative Committee conducted an investigation on the adverse audit findings on CENECO, covering the period Jan. 1, 2002 to Dec. 31, 2005.

Montelibano said present at the board meeting yesterday aside from him were directors Lito Fuentesfina, Eduardo Torrecampo and Julius Tamayo. Director Cesar Leonardia who is sick was absent, Montelibano said.

Tamayo was elected acting vice president and Torrecampo vice president.

Montelibano said CENECO operations have not been hampered by the suspension of their colleagues, and his election in acting capacity was necessary to avoid any vacuum in operations. CENECO has 130,000 consumers.

Montelibano said they will continue to work for more efficiency in CENECO operations to reduce systems losses.

It is important that the community also helps CENECO in reducing losses, he said.

If we can substantially reduce losses, it is possible that some reduction in power rates can be made, he said.

A press release from the coop, meanwhile said, it is still imposing a "1-Month Overdue Bill Automatic Disconnection" policy.

Through this policy, the coop is requesting the member-consumers to settle their accounts on time to avoid disconnection, the press release said. *CPG

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