The Commission on Audit (COA) has uncovered massive failures in the implementation of a government rural electrification program on Mindoro Island, where P482 million in subsidies failed to reach intended beneficiaries, according to audit reports released this year.
The Sitio Electrification Program, which received subsidies from the National Electrification Administration (NEA) between 2015 and 2023, achieved only a fraction of its targets in Oriental and Occidental Mindoro provinces, COA found.
In Oriental Mindoro, the electric cooperative (ORMECO) received P353.68 million in subsidies over eight years but energized only 286 out of 661 priority sitios (remote settlements) which represent just 43 percent of its target, according to the COA report.
Of the 286 sitios that did receive power, 237 were implemented between 2011 and 2014, before the audit period, investigators found.
Verification revealed only 49 sitios came from the priority list identified for urgent electricity connection.
COA also discovered that 19 unqualified institutions including churches and schools received free wiring materials and labor from ORMECO.
In Occidental Mindoro, the electric cooperative (OMECO) received P128.38 million between 2017 and 2023 and reported servicing 116 sitios.
However, auditors found 96 of these were not on the province’s priority list, according to an October 24 report.
The cooperative failed to provide board resolutions or barangay certificates justifying the substitutions, COA said.
The Sitio Electrification Program, launched under the Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001, was launched to provide electricity to remote barangays typically comprising 10 or more households located at least one kilometer from existing power lines.
NEA provides subsidies to rural electric cooperatives to extend services to these underserved areas, targeting full household electrification nationwide.
However, the program has been plagued by implementation issues and corruption allegations.
In 2019, COA flagged similar irregularities in Leyte province, where P124 million in subsidies resulted in only 30 percent of target sitios receiving power.
Auditors discovered ghost projects and double counting of beneficiaries.
A 2021 audit in Samar found that electric cooperatives diverted P89 million in sitio electrification funds to service commercial establishments and already-energized areas.
In Palawan, COA reported in 2022 that P156 million in subsidies went to areas already covered by solar home systems provided under a separate government program, representing wasteful duplication.
The program has also faced criticism over procurement irregularities.
In 2020, the Ombudsman filed graft charges against officials of Zamboanga del Norte electric cooperative for rigging bidding processes and overpricing materials for sitio electrification projects worth P78 million.
Photo courtesy of CELCO (Camotes Electric Cooperative) (for illustration purposes only)
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