OFFICIALS of the National Power Corporation (NPC) and the San Roque Power Corporation (SRPC) cancelled their appearance before the Dagupan City council as a result of the filing of a class suit against them by lawyers from Pangasinan before the Dagupan City Regional Trial Court.

Tommy Valdez, SRPC Vice president for corporate social responsibility, called Vice Mayor Belen Fernandez to inform her that they are cancelling their appearance because of the civil case for damages with prayer for temporary restraining order and or preliminary injunction.

NPC and SRPC officials were invited by the council for the second time for a briefing on its emergency plan in case of a  “dam-break” scenario.

NPC and SRPC officials outlined this plan when city officials of Dagupan led by Fernandez visited San Roque Dam last week with the intent of crafting an ordinance that would further boost emergency preparedness in the city.

Among the officials who joined the trip and who expressed the need for an emergency plan in case of a “dam-break” scenario was Councilor Netu Tamayo who led in the filing of the class suit, along with retired Justice Teodoro Regino.

Fernandez said there is a need for the city to know San Roque’s emergency plan so the city can prepare parallel response plans in the city in case of a “dam-break” scenario.

She clarified, however, that the people of Pangasinan need not panic because a dam break scenario is a very, very remote possibility even as she pointed out the necessity to have such an emergency plan in place.

Fernandez said NPC and SRPC officials merely cited the class suit as the reason for the cancellation of their briefing.

CAPITOL’S REACTION

Governor Amado Espino Jr. lamented that the lawyers did not coordinate their move with the province and enabled his government to join them as complainants in the class suit.

He said he tasked Vice Governor Marlyn Primicias Agabas and Provincial Legal Officer Geraldine Baniqued to study the possibility of filing a court suit.

Baniqued, however, said while she had the draft of the complaint even right after the flood, she was told that the provincial government could not possibly afford to pay the P100 million filing for P4.9 billion damage suit it planned to file.

She said Vice Gov. Agabas opted to file a case for injunction but the injunctive bond required by the court was prohibitive by the Capitol’s standards.

“We are still looking at the other options that we have “para maiparating ang ating disgust sa kanila tungkol sa nangyari sa atin,” said Baniqued.

Agabas revealed it was she who asked Regino, her uncle, to prepare a draft of a court suit against San Roque but was not forewarned of her uncle’s plan to file last week.

Justice Regino told newsmen last week that they had to file the case themselves when they felt the province was dragging its feet too long to decide.

Regino assembled about 30 to 40 lawyers but only 26 were able to raise the filing fee of P47,800 fixed by the court.- LM

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