Local representatives of the so-called Big 3, the country’s top oil players-- Shell, Caltex/Chevron and Petron, were at the receiving end Friday of harsh rhetoric during a consultative forum where spiraling oil prices were the object of heated discussion. As if on cue, Gov. Edgar Chatto took the opportunity to appeal to the oil players if it were possible for them to lower oil prices in the region . The discussions became so heated when they strayed into a territory where there seems to be a disparity of oil prices in Bohol as compared to that of the other regions in the country. “Why is Bohol higher than P8, compared to Cebu?” This was the bone of contention of the discussion while Chatto anxiously waited for the Big 3 to response.

Former OIC governor lawyer Victor dela Serna came across as a very strong representative of the people by pouring out his passionate sentiments against the country’s big oil players of a supposed monopoly of oil prices. Dela Serna alleged that these oil players were the ones imposing and dictating the country’s ever-present oil price hike and of the dilemma of the Filipino people wherein the Department of Energy (DOE) clearly is useless and could do nothing about it, which of course, was rebutted by Director Zenaida Monsada of DOE’s Oil Industry Management Bureau. The presence of Mandy Ochoa of Fil Oil even heightened dela Serna’s “wrath” when the former accounted how, as a new player and without all the mechanism and facilities that the Big 3 have, his company can afford to match the former’s price index and Suggested Retail Prices (SRPs).

The fierce exchange between Toby Nebreda of Chevron/Caltex and dela Serna came across as tough and challenging especially when the latter posed grueling questions which, even the other big players could not readily answer to satisfy the Boholanos. Gov. Chatto, always in his usual calm nature, showed signs of near frustrations as he expressed fear that the continuous oil price hike nationwide and the big disparity of oil prices between Region 7 and other regions could cause higher commodity, transport and labor costs with the people always at the receiving end. He challenged the Chevron/Caltex, Petron and Shell to address this concern hinting of a unified stand among Boholanos and provinces in the region of necessary actions if nothing is done about this. Chatto again reiterated the stand of Bohol for lower prices as he is welcomes new players coming in to Bohol.

“The new players would hopefully level the playing field and bring prices down”, he stressed. He likewise assured proponents that unresolved issues between Region 7 and the Big 3 would be carried over to the Regional Development Council (RDC) meeting come Monday in Siquijor for solutions or suggestions that would be amenable to all. The big 3’s attendance was the offshoot of an earlier forum held last February 3, and Chatto’s firm resolved to address this growing concern. Last Friday’s forum was also attended by DTI Region 7 Director Asteria Caberte, lawyer Jose Ma. Gastardo, who was the official representative of Cebu Gov. Gwen Garcia. (jlv/EDCom)