The Power for People Coalition welcomes the Energy Regulatory Commission’s order for all private power distribution utilities and electric cooperatives to halt the disconnection of electricity from households for the months of November and December. While a step in the right direction, this move remains sorely lacking to ensure our country’s relief and recovery from recent Typhoon Tino and Super Typhoon Uwan. The ERC had ordered the provision of staggered payment schemes for households that consume up to 100 kilowatt-hours in regions affected by the aforementioned typhoons. However, the average household consumes up to 200 kilowatt-hours, thus the ERC’s order excludes countless families from benefiting from such a policy, thereby slowing down their progress towards recovery.
The year-long state of national calamity requires all government agencies to “meet the basic subsistence needs of the people affected” by the typhoons, thus P4P presses our demand for no upward adjustments for electricity costs; and we demand that households consuming up to 200 kilowatts be allowed the staggered payment scheme. As we approach the holidays, we call on the ERC and all electric cooperatives to set aside their ambitions for profit and to uphold the Christmas spirit of giving for our people’s recovery past life-changing disasters.
