Please be informed that BILECO will be conducting its 2022 regular district elections of the Board of Directors for all districts on the following schedule:

Each district is entitled to one seat on the BILECO Board of Directors with the following term of office:

Only member-consumer-owners (MCOs) of the Electric Cooperative whose application for membership has been approved by BILECO on or before April 3, 2022, are qualified to vote.

BILECO shall post the initial master list of voters in strategic places including barangay halls, LGU bulletin boards and EC station offices to give MCOs time to verify their inclusion on the list. Any member whose name has been inadvertently excluded from the master list of Member-Consumers but failed to avail of the remedies during the inclusion/exclusion period shall not be allowed to vote. Such failure to avail of the remedies during the Inclusion/exclusion period shall be considered a waiver of the member’s right to vote.

Deadline for the inclusion/exclusion period shall be as follows:

Interested and qualified MCOs desiring to run for Directorship may secure the needed forms from the Institutional Services Department (ISD) of BILECO, Caraycaray, Naval, Biliran.

The QUALIFICATIONS and DISQUALIFICATIONS of candidates are as follows:

QUALIFICATIONS

Any member who is entitled to vote and has the following qualifications can be elected or continue as member of the Board of Directors:

1. He or she is a Filipino citizen;
2. He or she is a graduate of a four (4)-year course;
3. He or she should at least be twenty-one (21) years old and not over seventy (70) years old, on the date of election;
4. He or she is of good moral character which may be established with the submission of a certificate with all of the following:
   1. Barangay where the candidate resides;
   2. National Bureau of Investigation;
   3. Philippine National Police; or
   4. Leader of the religious sect where the candidate is affiliated
5. He or she is a member of the EC in good standing for the last five (5) years immediately preceding the election or appointment and shall continue to be a member in good standing during his or her incumbency. A member of good standing shall mean that said member:

5.1 Must have no unsettled or outstanding obligations to the cooperative during his/her membership in the cooperative whether personal or through commercial or industrial connections of which he or she is the owner or co-owner.

5.2 An unsettled or outstanding obligations is an account which has not been paid within seven (7) days after the due date. “Due date” shall refer to the date of receipt of the obligation. Provided, that in the case of power bills, it shall refer to the ninth (9th) day reckoned from receipt thereof. For incumbent members of the EC Board who will seek re-election, unsettled or outstanding obligation shall be deemed to include power bills, cash advances, disallowances (including NEA audit findings) and materials and equipment issuances. At any given time during his membership in the cooperative, he or she must be totally free of any unsettled or outstanding obligations and/or disallowances with the EC.

6. Has not been apprehended for electric pilferage. A mere apprehension of electric pilferage by the EC, even without conviction for such offense by any court, shall be a valid ground for disqualification. The word “apprehension” should be taken in the strict context as used in Republic Act No. 7832, otherwise known as “Anti-Electricity and Electric Transmission Lines or Materials Pilferage Act of 1994”, which means that a person is caught in flagrante delicto for violating the provision of the said Act.
7. Has not been removed for cause as director or an employee from any EC. In general, removal or termination of service from the EC is caused by a grave offense or violation/s of policies, rules and regulations. A former director or employee with a record of termination/removal for cause from public office or for just cause as defined in Article 282 of the Labor Code as amended, shall not be qualified to be elected or appointed as director of an EC.
8. He or she is an actual resident and consumer in the district that he or she seeks to represent for at least two (2) years immediately preceding the election; and
9. He or she has attended at least two (2) Annual General Membership Assemblies (AGMA) for the last five (5) years immediately preceding the election or appointment.
10. For a qualified government employee, he/she must present a written Certification from his/her Department Secretary/Regional Director/Local Chief Executive or his duly authorized representative allowing him/her to run and sit as director at the time of his/her filing of Certificate of Candidacy;
11. Additional qualification as per AGMA RESOLUTION No. 2018-01 states that he or she must have participated/voted at least once for the last five (5) years immediately preceding the election.

DISQUALIFICATIONS

Further, any person shall be ineligible to be elected or appointed as member of the Board of Directors of an EC if:

1. Such person or his or her spouse holds any public office. For the purpose of disqualification, a person holding an elective position or an appointive position with a salary grade of sixteen (SG-16) or higher or its equivalent shall not be eligible to be elected as member of the Board of Directors or Officers of an EC.
2. Such person or his or her spouse has been a candidate in the immediately preceding local or national elections.
3. Such person has been convicted by final judgment of a crime involving moral turpitude.
4. Such person has been terminated from public office/government employment or private employment for just cause as defined in Article 282 of the Labor Code. For this purpose, termination from public office shall mean removal.
5. Such person is related within the fourth civil degree of consanguinity or affinity to any member of the EC Board of Directors, General Manager, Department Manager, NEA-appointed Project Supervisor (PS) or Acting General Manager (AGM) and its equivalent or higher positions.
6. Such person is employed by or has financial interest in a competing enterprise or a business selling electric energy or electrical hardware to the cooperative or doing business with the EC including, but not limited to, the use or rental of poles. For this purpose of this By-Laws, “doing business” shall refer to the transactions related to the core or main line of business of the EC, which is conveyance of electricity through its distribution facilities.
7. Incumbent GM and employees of electric cooperatives are not allowed to run as member of the board of another cooperative.
8. The disqualification of one of the spouses shall mean the disqualification of the other.

For the information and guidance of all concerned.