THE Central Negros Electric Cooperative (Ceneco) has started yesterday, May 28, the barangay consultation about the creation of Member-Consumer-Owner (MCO) and referendum for the conversion of the electric cooperative which will be the agenda during its annual General Membership Assembly set on June 30 at the Tay Tung Gym.
Roel Venus, chief of Member-Consumers Integrated Services Division of Ceneco, said the barangay consultation will be held in all nine districts of Ceneco which will be done before June 30.
The first barangay consultation was held yesterday, May 28, in District 3 that covers 18 barangays of Bacolod City under Director Jojit Yap.
District 3 covers Barangays 17, 18, 19, 20, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32,33, 40, and 41.
She said that Ceneco is mandated by the National Electrification Administration (Nea) to create MCO and conduct a referendum.
Nea Chief Edgardo Masongsong said that electric cooperatives should come up with innovative ways to reach out to MCO to get them involved in shaping decisions that will affect the communities of their coverage areas.
Venus said all electric cooperatives are organizing MCO to help them out in terms of information dissemination especially on people's awareness of their programs in far-flung barangays, collection, apprehension which are subject to the approval of the Board.
Each barangay will have four MCOs, Venus said.
Meanwhile, Venus and Yap said the Ceneco management and its board are not pushing on their preference on the upcoming referendum about their possible conversion.
During its assembly, people will decide if they want a referendum and will be approved by the board and then the date will be set.
The three choices during the referendum are whether they want Ceneco to stay with Nea as non-stock, non-profit cooperative; register with the Cooperative Development Authority as stock and profit cooperative or register with the Securities and Exchange Commission as a private corporation.
