Mikey: No power outage in 2010 polls

MANILA, Philippines - Presidential son and House energy committee head Rep. Juan Miguel “Mikey” Arroyo said yesterday uninterrupted power supply in the 2010 elections “would be a legacy of this administration.”

“The election is a historic one as this would be the very first election in the country that will be automated,” Arroyo said.

“Personally, I would not want power outages on that date to create an iota or even a semblance of doubt on the credibility of the elections,” he said.

Energy Secretary Angelo Reyes, in a budget hearing last week, made a stunning announcement that a massive power crisis looms over Luzon next year or in time for the May 2010 presidential elections.

The energy secretary drew scathing reactions for his statement and critics even said he was conditioning the minds of the public for a failure of elections scenario.

Reyes’ statement came on the heels of projections by Tarlac Rep. Mark Cojuangco of a 2,000-megawatt shortfall in electricity in 2012.

Cojuangco is batting for the activation of the mothballed Bataan Nuclear Power Plant.

“I will use all powers within the means of my committee, particularly the committee’s oversight powers, to ensure there will be no power outages on May 10 when we cast our votes until such time the last vote has been tallied,” Arroyo said.

“It is time to put a stop to those brownouts on election day, much more that next year’s elections will be automated and it is going to rely heavily on power,” the young Arroyo said.

He would be holding dialogues with power producers and distributors regarding the matter.

“These power outages during election days have become so notorious they have become suspect as part of a grand design by some politicians to rig the election results in their favor,” he said.

Arroyo said he hopes to pinpoint problems and how to address them in his planned meeting with power producers and distributors.

“First, we have to trace what caused the power outages in the past elections,” he said.

“If they say those power outages were caused by the expected huge demand for power during summer when we hold the elections, then let us find ways to prevent power overloads so we will not have those power outages,” he said.

“I firmly believe there is a solution to every problem, including this one. We do not want a repeat of the energy crisis in the late 80s and early 90s when the country experienced daily brownouts from six to eight hours,” Arroyo recalled.

The young lawmaker said the country still has at least two and a-half years before the power crisis expected by Rep. Cojuangco in 2012.

“I believe we still have time to address that problem. But we have to start now,” Arroyo said, declining to comment if there is a need to activate the BNPP.

Prelates hit DOE chief

Roman Catholic bishops lashed out at Reyes for reportedly sowing panic with his announcement of a possible power crisis.

“Secretary Reyes should not give warning against a possible power shortage. We have eight months before the 2010 national elections, he can prepare and find solutions to the problem,” Borongan Eastern Samar Bishop Crispin Varquez said in an interview over Church-run Radio Veritas.

“He should give us assurance that there will be no brownout before, during and after the elections,” he said.

“Secure all power sources and all the mainlines to give assurance that there will be no brownout,” the prelate said addressing Reyes.

Varquez also debunked Reyes’ proposal to grant President Arroyo “emergency powers” to help her deal with the situation.

“Emergency power is not necessary, emergency power is necessary when there is crisis. There will be no crisis if they can foresee the possible problems,” he said.

Marbel Bishop Dinauldo Gutierrez, for his part, said Reyes does not have the competence to talk about the power supply situation.

“I don’t believe the assertions of Secretary Reyes. He is not an expert on the matter. Experts should be the ones to talk about the state of the country’s power supply,” Gutierrez said in another interview.

He said Reyes’ announcement could be part of the administration’s “scenario-building” to “condition the mind of the public.”

Enough time to react

Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPCRV) chair Henrietta de Villa said Reyes’ announcement has at least given authorities enough time to rectify the problem and prevent a failure of elections.

“It is good that the Department of Energy issued a warning of a power shortage next year so we would be able to find solutions to the problem,” De Villa told RadioVeritas.

“For instance, even Meralco (Manila Electric Co.) said that they would implement contingency measures so we do not experience power interruption during the elections,” De Villa, who also chairs the National Citizens’ Movement for Free Elections, said.

She said the Precinct Count Optical Scan machines would also be equipped with their own back up power supply enough to keep the machines running for an extra 12 hours.

She said Filipino voters should also do their part in preventing cheating or manipulation of election results. – With Evelyn Macairan and Helen Flores