Senator Risa Hontiveros .Handout from Office of Sen. Risa Hontiveros
MANILA, Philippines — Sen. Risa Hontiveros on Tuesday expressed alarm over the projection of the Department of Energy (DOE) that the country’s power supply may hit a critical level during election time next year.
She said it was “worrisome” that the DOE was predicting a “grim” power outlook even as its top official, Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi, was actively pushing for the candidacy of President Duterte, who had expressed willingness to run for vice president.
“This pronouncement is worrisome because this is an indirect threat to the canvassing of votes in May. This also adds to the insecurity in our electoral process, instead of the DOE helping protect the integrity of our elections,” Hontiveros said.
‘Thin’ power supply
Energy Undersecretary William Fuentebella was earlier quoted as saying the power supply in the country would “be thin on election day and thereafter.”
“That is why we are closely monitoring the situation; and we are coming up with more policies so that we can ensure that we have more supply,” he added.
But the DOE issued a clarification on Tuesday, saying the statement was “taken out of context.”
“We emphasize that we have sufficient supply of electricity for the election week. The initial outlook shows sufficiency of supply, with no yellow alerts, and no power interruptions,” the DOE said in a press release.
Hontiveros said more Filipinos have aired their concerns about the “growing signs” of problems that might impair the integrity of the 2022 elections.
“If our people raise [a] howl over outages this early, how much more if this happens during the elections,” she said. INQ