NEA administrator fired by Duterte
EDGARDO MASONGSONG – The administrator of the National Electrification Administration (NEA) has been fired by President Rodrigo Duterte for alleged corruption.
NEA is a government-owned and controlled corporation (GOCC) attached to the Department of Energy of the Philippines tasked with the full implementation of the rural electrification program (REP) and reinforce the technical capability and financial viability of the 121 rural electric cooperatives (ECs).
In a taped speech aired on Saturday, August 21, Duterte revealed that he terminated Masongsong.
According to Duterte, it was Presidential Anti-Corruption Commission (PACC) that conducted an investigation and recommended the dismissal of Masongsong from office.
The president noted that the termination of the NEA administrator is proof that they are trying to end corruption within the government.
Earlier, PACC filed a case versus the ex-NEA administrator for allegedly allowing electric cooperatives to contribute funds for the campaign of a party-list during 2019 polls.
Meanwhile, Malacañang said that Duterte will keep his anti-corruption promise as the President was certain to dismiss government officials whose corrupt activities had been documented.
This, after the Commission on Audit (COA), flagged numerous transactions of government agencies including the Department of Health (DOH), the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), the Department of Transportation (DOTr), and more.
Following the latest COA reports, the president said that there is a need to “correct” the public’s perception as it will “destroy the faith of the people in the government.”
It can be recalled that during the 2016 presidential campaign, the former Davao mayor promised to end corruption under his administration.
However, in his last State of the Nation Address, the country’s president that the problem of graft and corruption is still persistent.
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