Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri said on Thursday, January 4, that he is absolutely incensed and dismayed by the persistent power outages plaguing Western Visayas, especially in Iloilo.
“If we have to investigate it, we will do it to solve the root of the problem,” Zubiri said.
“This situation is no longer tolerable, and the Department of Energy and the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines must urgently address this issue before irreparable damage is done to our community”, he said.
“This is not a good sign, especially since we are welcoming the New Year. The government should not bring trouble and hardship to our citizens upon entering 2024,” Zubiri said.
Constant power interruptions have widespread effects on communities, extending beyond mere inconvenience, he said.
They affect not only businesses, livelihood and the delivery of basic services to the people, but they have dire and far-reaching consequences on the lives of citizens, Zubiri added.
He said it is dangerous for hospitals to lack electricity.
“What about those in incubators, life-support or those who have to do dialysis on a day without electricity? As power outages continue, our citizens are put at risk,” he added.
The DOE and the NGCP must understand the gravity of this situation and act decisively to resolve the situation, Zubiri said.
“They should get their acts together immediately. We demand transparency in identifying the root causes of these outages and a comprehensive plan of action to resolve them,” he added.
Both the DOE and the NGCP need to get to the bottom of these deeply disruptive outages and ensure that power is restored to every household and establishment in Panay Island, Negros Island and Guimaras as soon as possible, he added.
“We will not stand idly by while our fellow Filipinos suffer due to the negligence and lack of urgency in addressing this power crisis”, Zubiri said.
Senator Sherwin Gatchalian said he is urgently calling on the DOE, NGCP and ERC to expedite the investigation of the power interruption that severely affected the islands of Panay, Guimaras, and Negros.
The DOE, NGCP, and ERC must swiftly implement effective measures to prevent the recurrence of such disruptive incidents, which adversely affect business operations and the day-to-day activities of our people, he said.
Senator Grace Poe said concerned agencies and private companies must find ways to restore power in Panay Island at the most expedient time.
The blackout that happened in April last year in the island provinces should have been an eye opener for the NGCP and power utilities, she said.
“They should have been better prepared for any system disturbance and avert such with efficient planning and utilization of resources, Poe said.
Senate Majority Leader Joel Villanueva said government should have a short- and long-term plan to ensure that there would be no more power disruptions in the future.
“These programs must include proper maintenance of power plants, generators, and similar facilities. We also need to continue exploring other sources of renewal energy such as wind and solar to keep up with the department’s goal of renewable power generation mix target of 35 percent by 2030,” he said.
Senator Raffy Tulfo, chairperson of the Senate Committee on Energy, said he is filling a resolution seeking to investigate the power outage.
“This issue needs to be resolved immediately and efficiently. I urge the concerned government agencies, power utilities, and relevant stakeholders to prioritize and expedite the resolution of the power crisis,” Senator Jinggoy Estrada said.*