Senior ruling party officials’ split over energy chief’s tenure widens

Santo Domingo.- Economy minister Temistocles Montas is the latest senior ruling PLD party official to join the row around the controversial tenure of State-owned power utility (CDEEE) Celso Marranzini, who in his view put a halt to the " disorder" in the agency.

But Marranzini has butted heads with members of the PLD’s top echelon, the Political Committee, including the utility’s former CEO Radhames Segura and Insurance superintendent Euclides Gutierrez, and as recent as last week with Santo Cristobal senator Tommy Galan.

In response to Galan’s questioning of a US$500.0 million bond to allocate to the CDEEE, Montas said the lawmakers were aware that what had been budget for the utility, in the end wouldn’t be enough.

As the August 16 date for president elect Danilo Medina’s inaugural nears, the talk centers on his close collaborator and former head of the electricity distributor EDEESTE, Ruben Bichara, as one of Marranzini’s possible replacements.