Doomed to repetition

There is a saying that goes something like: Those who do not learn the lessons from the past are doomed to repeat it.

Right now this is so true for the leaders and citizens of Mindanao. After being confronted time and again by power shortages, brown outs and black outs, they are once again suffering in many parts of the region. Once again, politicians representing Mindanao are calling on the national government “to do something about the problem”.

I find it so ironic that after all the shortcomings and inability of past administrations to do something about the problem, people like Senator Koko Pimentel are once again turning to Malacañang or Imperial Manila to solve the problem for them. What would be so different or unique to the PNoy administration that makes Pimentel believe that this government can achieve what no other administration was able to?

I hate to do an “I told you so” but the people of Mindanao, particularly the politicians and the business leaders should have tried to solve the problem on their own, a long time ago. Instead it has always been “business as usual”. Big business in Mindanao never thought in the long term and to be proactive about the electric power supply, so now they are doomed to go through the same experience as in the past.

It’s morbidly funny that several Mindanao leaders and groups spent more time trying to promote the creation of a federal form of government or a Mindanao state rather than rebuilding or redesigning their power generation system for the region.

I’m sure some people, most likely politician who reads this, will say it’s not possible. Some might even say it’s not their job. But let me cite just one example of localized response and problem solving that the leaders of Mindanao may want to think hard about. It is not the most perfect example for the Mindanao problem, but they will help the region wean its self from relying on unreliable Imperial Manila.

The leaders of Mindanao should consider alternative solutions such as putting up modern windmills, which is what Senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos did while he was still governor of Ilocos Norte. Instead of finding an answer to an existing problem, Bongbong Marcos and his fellow Ilocanos avoided the future problem of power shortage while introducing very modern, eco-friendly windmills.

Not only did they break away from fuel dependent electric generation, they came up with a much cheaper alternative and something that has even become something of a tourist attraction. I would even wager that those windmills and the proactive problem solving was a big factor in getting Bongbong Marcos elected as Senator.

Unlike Mindanao which has all the natural resources particularly waterfalls that are useful for power generation, Ilocos has very little to brag about. Yet that did not stop them from realizing that they had an ideal location for windmills. I suppose the Ilocanos had to take out a loan to do the project, but at least now they have power. The worse situation to be in is to have all the natural resources, all the money, but no electricity and no fuel to generate it.

Mindanao of course may be a hundred times bigger than Ilocos Norte but their problem is not going to get smaller unless they proactively think outside the box and

Chop things up into realistic solutions. Mindanao cannot solely rely on solutions that have proven to be unreliable.

Fuel prices have become unreasonably expensive along with the electricity it generates. Hydro- electric power has been greatly diminished no thanks to deforestation and global warming, while the national power provider is clearly unable to cope or has attained obsolescence. So why insist on the same solutions.

Mindanao can’t totally be free from bunker fuel and fuel barges, but given their resources they should have concentrated on “making money by saving money” such as alternative fuels from coconut, corn and palm oil. Instead of trying to save the Philippines from imported fuels, first save Mindanao by making its own fuel for its own power generators for its own power. Free yourselves from Luzon.

By reducing the load through alternative energy concepts and developing a combination of solutions such as windmills, Solar power plants, plant based fuels, Mindanao can, at the very least, reduce it’s over all consumption and thereby minimize shortages. All over the country, my impression is that we simply have not had a leader or leadership that has a vision focused on liberating or reducing the Filipino dependence on fossil fuel.

By solving their own problem, using their natural resources and pioneering spirit, the people of Mindanao might ultimately solve their problems as much as ours. All they have to do is think differently.