GENERAL SANTOS CITY, Philippines — A prayer rally calling for greater transparency and accountability has intensified the debate over a proposed partnership between South Cotabato II Electric Cooperative (SOCOTECO II) and Ignite Power, but the controversial deal is still moving toward a crucial September plebiscite that could reshape electricity distribution across General Santos City, Sarangani and parts of South Cotabato.
The proposed joint venture involving Ignite Power—a partnership between Enrique Razon Jr.-led Primelectric Holdings Inc. and Manny Pacquiao’s MP Holdings—will ultimately be decided by SOCOTECO II’s member-consumer-owners (MCOs), not by the rally itself.
Around 200,000 qualified MCOs are expected to participate in the month-long vote, scheduled over four weekends in September: September 5–6, 12–13, 19–20 and 26–27.
The stakes are enormous: supporters see private investment as a possible lifeline for a financially struggling electric cooperative, while critics are demanding more transparency and questioning whether consumers have been given enough information about the long-term consequences of the deal.
Calls for transparency grow ahead of crucial vote
Church-based and civil society groups have raised concerns about the proposed Conditional Joint Venture Agreement (CJVA), with the Social Action Center of the Diocese of Marbel among those calling for greater transparency, accountability and meaningful participation by cooperative members.
The concerns culminated in a prayer rally on August 29, just days before voting begins. Opponents have argued that MCOs deserve a clearer understanding of the agreement and its implications before making what could be one of the most consequential decisions in SOCOTECO II’s history.
Ignite Power, meanwhile, has maintained that the proposed partnership is intended to modernize the cooperative’s aging distribution system and improve service for consumers.
The debate highlights a central question facing SOCOTECO II members: Can private capital solve the cooperative’s long-running operational problems without compromising the interests and voice of its consumer-owners?
Why the proposed SOCOTECO II-Ignite Power deal matters
SOCOTECO II has been grappling with serious financial and operational challenges. Reports from the cooperative and recent news coverage indicate that it has accumulated substantial losses, while system losses have climbed and aging infrastructure requires significant investment.
SOCOTECO II officials have said the cooperative has been losing more than ₱40 million a month, with actual system losses approaching 14 percent. The cooperative also needs major upgrades to its substations, distribution lines and other equipment to meet growing demand and improve reliability.
Under the proposed partnership, Ignite Power has outlined a five-year modernization program that would focus on rehabilitating aging facilities, upgrading equipment, reducing power interruptions and cutting system losses.
Ignite Power has also said it aims to bring the system loss level passed on to consumers down to 5.5 percent, compared with SOCOTECO II’s current recoverable cap of 8.25 percent. The company has said it would initially fund improvements before seeking regulatory approval for any cost recovery, although any future adjustments to regulated charges would still be subject to approval by the Energy Regulatory Commission.
How the deal is structured
Under the proposed Conditional Joint Venture Agreement, Ignite Power would acquire SOCOTECO II’s distribution assets, with 70 percent of the consideration paid in cash and the remaining 30 percent converted into SOCOTECO II’s equity stake in the proposed new distribution company, according to recent reports on the agreement.
The proposal has already received significant support during SOCOTECO II’s annual general membership assembly, where roughly 32,000 MCOs endorsed the proposed partnership in July.
But that endorsement was not the final approval.
The September plebiscite remains the make-or-break stage for the proposed joint venture. Reports have said the partnership must secure the required approval from qualified cooperative members before it can move forward under applicable rules.
A power struggle that now belongs to the consumers
The prayer rally may have amplified opposition and public scrutiny, but it has not halted the scheduled vote.
In the days leading up to the plebiscite, both sides are effectively fighting for the confidence of the people who own the cooperative: its member-consumer-owners.
For supporters, the argument is urgent—SOCOTECO II needs fresh capital, modernization and a solution to its mounting financial pressures.
For critics, the urgency is exactly why the process must be transparent, with consumers given sufficient information to understand what they are voting for and what they may be giving up.
As September approaches, the Razon-Pacquiao-backed proposal has become more than a business deal. It is now a defining test of how one of Mindanao’s major electric cooperatives balances modernization, private investment, consumer protection and democratic participation.
The rally is over. The campaign for public trust is not.
And when nearly 200,000 SOCOTECO II member-consumer-owners head to the polls, they will decide whether Ignite Power gets the green light—or whether one of the region’s most closely watched power deals comes to a halt.
The final question is no longer whether the controversy will disappear. It is whether the proposed deal can win enough trust to survive the vote.
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