DOJ: Appointment of power firm board member Lotilla as energy chief legal
MANILA, Philippines — Lawyer Raphael Lotilla can be the country’s new energy secretary, according to the Department of Justice which said that his nomination is "valid and lawful" after the Palace said it was checking if the nomination could push through.
Press Secretary Trixie Cruz-Angeles announced Monday that President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. had picked Lotilla as the chief of the Department of Energy, a position he held from 2005 to 2007 during the Arroyo administration.
She clarified hours later that Lotilla was still considered a nominee pending the clarification of his employment status. Lotilla is an independent director of Aboitiz Power Corp., and of oil and gas exploration and production firm ACE Enexor.
In a statement Thursday, the DOJ stressed that the “novel concept of an ‘independent director’ was not contemplated by Republic Act 7638 or the law creating the DOE.
The laws states that “no officer, external auditor, accountant, or legal counsel of any private company or enterprise primarily engaged in the energy industry shall be eligible for appointment as Secretary within two (2) years from his retirement, resignation, or separation therefrom.”
The justice department also said that an independent director “is not an officer based on the nature, duties, functions and responsibilities vis-à-vis the corporation he serves” in accordance with the Revised Corporation Code, Securities and Regulations Code, and the Code of Corporate Governance.
"It is sui generis in character," it said, Latin for "of its kind."
The DOJ furthered that even the articles and by-laws of Aboitiz Power Corporation and Ace Enexor adopt the statutory concept of an independent director.
"Thus, it is clear that an independent director like Lotilla does not fall within the proscription under Section 8 of RA 7638 against an officer, external auditor, accountant, or legal counsel of any private company or enterprise primarily engaged in the energy industry," it said.
Lotilla, also a law professor, will have to address the high prices of petroleum products caused by developments in the global market, and ensure energy security- or the uninterrupted availability of energy sources at an affordable cost. — with reports from Angelica Yang and Kaycee Valmonte
- Latest
- Trending
