BAGUIO CITY: The Philippine Rural Electric Cooperatives Association (Philreca) has called on the Senate to intervene in a brewing leadership impasse at Benguet Electric Cooperative (Beneco) by compelling the Department of Energy and the National Electrification Administration (NEA) to respect the decision of the member-consumer-owners (MCOs) in the selection of the general manager of one of the country's top performing electric cooperatives.

In her letter to Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian, chairman of the Senate Committee on Energy, Philreca Executive Director Janeene Colingan pointed out that the NEA has no power to take over the management of Beneco, unless the agency can consider and could prove that it is an ailing cooperative when, on the contrary, Beneco supposedly has been a model of excellent operation and brilliant service to its MCOs.