Thursday, July 17, 2008 Arroyo allots P1B for energy program
PRESIDENT Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has allocated an additional P1 billion for the country to attain energy sufficiency.
Speaking before the participants of the Switch program which was spearheaded by the Department of Energy (DOE), the President said P500 million will be earmarked to fund the purchase of CFLs (compact florescent lamps) and the other half or P500 million will be used to help the transport sector cope with the rising cost of fuel.
Defending her decision not to scrap the expanded value-added tax (e-VAT) on oil, Arroyo said the P1 billion will come from the windfall profit collected from oil and power.
She noted that VAT on oil and power gave the government a total revenue of P70 billion used to fund the pro-poor projects.
"If VAT on oil and power is lifted how would we be able to raise the P70 billion revenues used to fund projects for the poor," she said.
President Arroyo said the P500 million funding allocated by the government for the Switch project would achieve the country's target of 60 percent energy self-sufficiency by 2010.
The Switch program is an offshoot of the Energy Summit sometime in January wherein, 2,500 stakeholders came up with short, medium- and long-term responses as well as a consensus to seize opportunities to gradually move away from dependence on fossil fuels, while exploring ways to accelerate programs to ensure energy security.
During the ceremonial switching from incandescent bulbs to CFLs, Arroyo announced that the government will try to phase out use of incandescent bulbs by 2009 and other steps that would help address the problem of climate change.
The event highlighted by "Palit Ilaw" program, involved multi-sectoral participants such as local government units of the National Capital Region composed of Manila, Taguig, Las Piñas, Makati, Muntinlupa, Parañaque, Pasay, Pateros, San Juan, Mandaluyong, Marikina, Pasig, Quezon, Caloocan, Navotas, Malabon, and Valenzuela.
The Switch Movement was initiated by a group of convenors consisting of Manila Archbishop Gaudencio Rosales, Meneleo Carlos of the Federation of Philippine Industries, Odette Alcantara of Mother Earth Philippines, Prof. Randolf David of University of the Philippines, Vigor Mendoza of the 1-United Transport Koalisyon, Renalyn Cruz of the World Youth Alliance, and Neeraj Jain of the Asian Development Bank.
The participants symbolically changed incandescent bulbs to CFLs which was also done simultaneously in different public places in Metro Manila such as public markets, schools and city halls.
Renewable Energy Coalition convenor Catherine Maceda explained that the use of the more efficient CFLs would result in a savings of 75 percent from the electricity bills of consumers.
Maceda said replacing one million incandescent bulbs will save the government US$50 million which is equivalent to a 50-megawatt power plant.
Aside from the "Palit Ilaw" program, Switch program also aims the shift from petroleum-based fuels to alternative fuels and cleaner technologies in the transport sector; switch from kerosene to renewable energy sources for lighting and basic electricity in remote rural areas; switch from fossil fuel-based technologies to renewable energy technologies in power generation, where feasible at the local level; and lastly switch from centralized energy planning to more participative, bottom-up energy planning at the local level. (MSN/JMR/Sunnex)
