MANILA, Philippines — Senator Manny Pacquiao on Wednesday challenged Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi to show he is worthy of leading the Department of Energy (DOE) amid electricity supply issues in the country.
Cusi, for his part, was quick to assure Pacquiao that the DOE will face the challenges hounding the country’s power supply “wholeheartedly.”
It was during the Senate energy committee hearing on the country’s power supply when Pacquiao called on concerned agencies not to point fingers at one another and to stop “making alibis.”
READ: Energy officials pass buck on power outages
“As much as possible, kung connected sa trabaho mo ‘yan, eh gawin na natin ‘yung effort para magkaroon tayo ng kaginhawaan naman. ‘Wag ‘yung gagawa tayo ng mga dahilan na, mga alibi,” Pacquiao said.
(As much as possible, if that’s connected to your job, let’s make efforts to ensure that we will achieve comfort. Let’s not make up excuses or alibis.)
“To Sec. Cusi, nothing personal, but sana mawala na ito, ma-avoid itong brownouts na nangyayari. Ikaw ang nilagay diyan sa energy, diyan na maging secretary sa energy dahil naniniwala sayo ang Pangulo… Ipakita mo na karapat-dapat ka diyan at kung ano ‘yung problema related to your work, aksyunan n’yo na,” he added.
(To Sec. Cusi, nothing personal, but I hope these brownouts will no longer happen. You are the one designated in the energy department, appointed to be secretary of energy because the President believes in you… Show that you’re worthy to be there and whatever the problem that’s related to your work, take action.)
Pacquiao earlier slammed Cusi as “incompetent” and accused the energy chief of prioritizing politics rather than addressing the rotating power outages due to thinning supply in the Luzon grid some weeks ago.
The senator’s criticism against Cusi followed a seeming rift between the two over matters concerning the ruling Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan (PDP-Laban), where both serve as officials.
Pacquiao is the political party’s president while Cusi is its vice-chairman.
Cusi earlier called for a meeting, which Malacañang said had the blessing of party chairman, President Rodrigo Duterte, despite the opposition expressed by Pacquiao.
READ: Ignore Cusi’s call for nat’l assembly, Pacquiao urges PDP-Laban members
But Pacquiao, during Thursday’s hearing, maintained that his criticism against Cusi was not due to personal issues.
“This is not personal but this is the concern of the people. ‘Yung mga consumers natin apektado, especially ‘yung mga nag-aaral natin na mga estudyante ‘pag-online, at saka ‘yung mga nagtatrabaho,” he added.
(This is not personal but this is the concern of the people. Our consumers are affected, especially those studying online and those who are working.)
He added that energy officials should now discuss before the Senate committee what could be improved and developed in the country’s energy sector instead of reverting to the same explanations over and over again.
In response to the senator’s manifestation, Cusi assured Pacquiao that the DOE will heed his call.
“Nakinig po ako sa panawagan po ng atin pong Senator Manny Pacquiao at naunawan ko ang sinasabi po ninyo at makakaasa po kayo… that DOE will face the challenge wholeheartedly,” the energy secretary said.
(We hear the call of Senator Manny Pacquiao and we understand what you said and what your concerns are and you can be assured… that DOE will face the challenge wholeheartedly.)