After attending the Mindanao Power Summit Friday, Bayan Muna Rep. Teddy Casiño called on President Benigno Aquino III to listen to the people of Mindanao and not make the same mistake as his predescesors did in the Visayas and Luzon, which was to totally privatize power and jack up prices.
“The President was not only insensitive but dead wrong in giving the people of Mindanao only two choices, which is to pay higher rates or live in darkness. There is another way, which is to address the power shortage by ensuring that the government-owned hydroelectric power plants continue to provide cheap and abundant renewable energy to Mindanao,” said Casiño.
He said Mindanao does not have to follow the path taken by Visayas and Luzon, where electricity rates are the highest in Asia. “In fact, given that its low cost of power gives Mindanao its competitive edge, jacking up the rates would kill the economy and make the people of Mindanao poorer than they already are.”
“The Mindanao Summit is showing the right way to go about developing the power sector, which is to ensure that state-run plants provide cheap and abundant renewable energy while regulating the industry to avoid monopoly and abuse of market power,” said the progressive solon.
“Pres.Aquino should especially heed the call of the governors of Mindanao who passed a resolution opposing the planned privatization of the Agus and Pulangi hydropower plants.The governors are also seeking the revision of the EPIRA that would stop the further privatization of public power facilities, prohibit cross-ownership, and declare power plants as public utilities subject to the Public Utilities Act. We in Congress support their calls,” said the Davao-born lawmaker.
Mindanao lawmakers, on the other hand, are proposing the creation of a Mindanao Power Corporation to run the rehabilitated Agus and Pulangui hydroelectric plants.
Casiño said that he was dismayed at Pres. Aquino’s response to the summit. “Instead of listening and keeping an open mind to the sound and logical proposals to stop the privatization of Agus & Pulangui hydropower plants to keep power rates low, revise EPIRA and further develop the island’s rich renewable energy sources, he was intent on shooting down the proposals and insisting that Mindanaoans pay higher rates for private power companies.”
“The President seemed gravely misinformed about the negative impact of power privatization in Mindanao, the facts about renewable energy, and the failures of the EPIRA law. He even said hindi siya nagpapapogi, insinuating that the participants were just grandstanding. It was a truly disappointing exercise. The morning session was great but things turned sour when the President spoke,” Casiño concluded.
