The need to reset technical and financial targets of electric cooperatives due to the Covid-19 pandemic demands a highly capable leadership to avert possible crises during these turbulent times.
This is why employees of Benguet Electric Cooperative (Beneco) are seeking the appointment of their interim head as a full-fledged general manager as they vouched for his competence to lead the electric cooperative.
The Beneco Employees’ Labor Union, Supervisors’ Association, and the department managers reiterated their support to Engr. Melchor Licoben, who was appointed general manager in an OIC capacity, and asked the National Electrification Administration to make him the electric coop’s full-fledged overall head.
The NEA has confirmed Licoben’s designation as OIC general manager effective May 1. He was appointed by the Board of Directors to succeed Gerardo Verzosa who retired in April.
In a resolution, the employees expressed confidence that Licoben possesses the knowledge and skills needed for Beneco to combat the challenges of the electricity industry, especially with the concerns brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic.
“We have reposed on his leadership the trust and confidence that he could muster the needed directions for Beneco to combat the challenges brought about by the pandemic. We believe that he could usher in for the electric coop a performance above par, if not equal to the stature and reputation that Beneco has been known for today,” the resolution, passed on July 16, stated.
“We plead before NEA to put into motion and with urgency the procedure or process for the appointment of Licoben as general manager.”
Beneco employees holding supervisory positions have also sought the support of the National Association of General Managers of Electric Cooperatives to their call for NEA to designate Licoben as Beneco general manager in full capacity.
“We are confident that the trainings and capabilities of Licoben are adequate for his position as general manager. We believe and we are confident in the direction to where he wants Beneco to be, with utmost consideration to the welfare of every employee of the coop,” the supervisors stated in a separate resolution.
In appointing Licoben as OIC general manager, the Beneco board said that his experience and familiarity with the operations of the electric coop are more than sufficient to qualify him to the position.
“His experience is not limited to the operations of Beneco, but also to the intricacies and technical complexities of the rural electrification program and the electric distribution industry,” the Beneco board said. – Jane B. Cadalig
April 19, 2024
