State of calamity draws mixed reactions

THE declaration of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo placing the entire island of Mindanao under a state of calamity had drawn mixed reactions from politicians and government officials.

Cagayan de Oro City Mayor Constantino G. Jaraula said he supports President Arroyo’s decision if it would be implemented in “good faith.”

“The declaration can solve the present power crisis if good faith prevails in its implementation. The crisis has no political color and let no politician play around,” Jaraula said.

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He said the declaration is well under Arroyo’s “reserved executive power.”

However, Bukidnon Representative Teofisto Guingona III said he is alarmed with the declaration as President Arroyo “may just be testing the waters” as a pretext to placing the whole country under a state of calamity -- then state of emergency.

Guingona, a member of the Joint Congressional Power Commission (JCPC)-Oversight Committee, said the declaration “could still be abused to serve Ms. Arroyo’s convoluted plan to stay in power.”

“Need I point out Ms. Arroyo’s propensity to lie through her teeth?” Guingona said.

He said that Arroyo need only to invoke Section 71 of the Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001 (Epira) which would enable the National Government to legally award and bid additional power producers to “effectively address the power crisis in Mindanao once and for all.”

Meanwhile, Cagayan de Oro second district Representative Rufus Rodriguez is calling for the creation of a multi-sectoral calamity fund management task force following the declaration of a state of calamity.

Rodriguez said a task force should be created for the purpose of transparency especially that under the said law, bidding is no longer needed.

“The Church would be involved aside from the business sector in the planning since the task force will be the one to present and explain where the calamity funds go,” Rodriguez said.

With this, an initial P5.5 billion calamity funds would be used to purchase modular generating sets to generate additional capacity of 160 megawatts (MW) in Mindanao, Rodriguez said.

The lawmaker emphasized that the declaration will answer the problem of power deficiency in Mindanao because of the El Niño phenomenon that causes damage of agriculture.

“I also asked for additional P4.5 billion funds for immediate assistance to farmers affected by the dry spell in Mindanao,” Rodriguez added.

He said the declaration of the state of calamity would also enable local government units to use five percent of their calamity funds to address the power crisis in Mindanao.

On Thursday, Arroyo approved the recommendation of the National Disaster and Coordinating Council (NDCC) to declare the state of calamity so it could pool all government resources to purchase additional power supply in Mindanao.

Meanwhile, the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) said the Mindanao grid is still not stable with an expected deficiency of 650 MW.

Elizabeth A. Ladaga, NGCP district 3 communications officer, said this is due to the (reduced) capabilities of hydro-electric power plants in the Mindanao grid.

Mindanao grid’s total available capacity as of Friday was around 807 MW with an expected peak demand of 1,457 MW. (With reports from Annabelle L. Ricalde)