National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) Vice President and Spokesperson Cynthia Alabanza (Ellison Quismorio/ MANILA BULLETIN)

National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) Vice President and Spokesperson Cynthia Alabanza said that all engineers of transmission company--which had been under fire for allegedly being under foreign control--were Filipinos.

Alabanza made this revelation in a chance interview Thursday, Jan. 23 just minutes before the scheduled House Committee on Legislative Franchises hearing on the NGCP's alleged violations on its existing operating franchise.

In the interview, the NGCP official once again denied the existence of an alleged single shutdown button that could cut off power to the grid.

This allegation is especially worrisome to critics who believe that the privately-owned grid operator is actually being run by the Chinese.

"Matagal na namin sinasabi na walang kontrol aa labas ng sistema ng NGCP. Ibig sabihin niyan hindi kami nakakabit sa Internet...Mayroon kaming sariling sistema na hindi nakasalalay sa worldwide web, o Internet service provider," Alabanza said.

(We've long been saying that no control exists outside the NGCP's system. That means we're not connected to the Internet...We have our own system that doesn't rely on the worldwide web, or an Internet service provider.)

"Pangalawa, ang mga inhinyero natin ay puro Pilipino. Lahat sila ay nandoon at mahigpit po ang aming security protocols na sinisigurado na hindi basta basta makakapasok ang sinuman," she said.

(Second, all our engineers are Filipinos. All of them are there and we have strict security protocols that ensure that nobody can enter easily.)

Alabanza did not say how many engineers NGCP had employed.  

She said the strict security protocols apply to her, even though she's a long-time NGCP employee.

"Pag sumunod tayo sa security protocols, pwede natin makita yung sa loob, pero up to a certain degree para hindi naman na tayo makaistorbo doon sa pamamalakad ng sistema. In fact, marami na rin ako nadalang mga media para makita nila na talaga at mapatunaya nila na Pilipino ang napapatakbo," Alabanza said.

(If we follow the security protocols, we can be allowed inside, but only up to a certain degree so as not to disturb the system being run. In fact, I've accompanied a lot of media practitioners there to show them that Filipinos are running the place.)

NGCP is 40 percent owned by China and 60 percent owned by the Philippines.