The Meralco Gambit

Let's set aside our partisan thoughts about the Lopezes and pause for a while and think about the repercussions of today's Meralco stockholder's meeting.

True enough, as what we wrote in the Filipinovoices.com, Garcia's ploy of using proxies backfired. The Lopezes mustered more than the number of proxies that Garcia was able to generate. Realizing this a day earlier, Garcia filed a complaint with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). It was, however, too late in the game. Garcia was distracted by numerous media inquiries that he failed to do his assignment.

Those scenes we saw on TV Patrol and over at ANC shows you graphically how government interference could backfire and lead to a real mess. That scene showing Garcia standing up and shouting at all those stockholders show you how a member of Gloria's mafia gang thinks about himself as an overlord of this country.

Surely, the ruckus created by the government in a private entreprise such as Meralco could dampen investor confidence in the independence and integrity of the local business community. Those scenes of confusion, of chaos, and of disorder shows one how messy a situation would become if government interferes in a legitimate business operation. True, the Lopezes could be profitting more than it can legally chew. True, the Lopezes could be mismanaging Meralco and charging us exorbitant fees. And true, the Lopezes could be entering into those sweetheart deals that impacts on the rates they're charging us.

Yet, the cost of dislodging this aristocrat from their crown jewel is more expensive than its intended result. The intended result is a lowered electricity rate, right? But, if done in an expensive gambit like this could do more harm than good. Imagine these scenes being repeated in other countries' television, what would foreign investors think about us? How many billions of dollars' worth of investment did we lose? How many billions more did we lose in tourism? Quite considerable if I may be asked.

Government's continued harassment and intimidation tactics against the Lopezes set a very dangerous precedent. It shows how this government is slowly turning into a rapacious corporate raider and destroyer of enterprise. It shows that government is using the people's money for corporate raids which will not in any way, benefit the suffering Filipino People.

This gambit of Gloria backfired. First, it showed how powerful the Lopezes are compared with the Garcias, the Aboitizes, the Alcantaras, and the Arroyos of this land. Second, it showed how teethless the SEC is. And third, it shows how inept and foolish government becomes when the people allow it to continually perpetuate its proto-dictatorial powers especially on businesses.

I hate to say it, but this gambit of Garcia could further erode the people's confidence and could be used to justify extra-constitutional means to dislodge this evil regime from the face of the Motherland.

Business and civil society should unite and show Gloria the true source of power. Let everyone unite behind the movement for change and throw this evil regime out. Then, after throwing them out and exiling them to China, then, let's resume this fight against the Lopezes. By then, the entire nation would probably rally behind us.