| Who Will Smile From the Power Bill? The Power Bill is good for the country provided if it is implemented properly. If it does, competition would arise in the power industry thus lowering the price of electricity. This would bring smiles on the faces of Filipinos who are paying so much for good livelihood with so little money to spend with. But in a country known to be governed by corrupt officials, it would take a miracle for the Power Bill to be effective. This is the reason why the privatization of National Power Corporation a.k.a. Power Bill is not going to work in the Philippines. Few years back, the government privatized the National Waterworks System. It is sold to private sectors who are poised to deliver water to every Filipino household more effectively and cheaper. Years after, most Filipinos in Metro Manila alone have no access to clean water. A bottle of drinking water is more expensive than a bottle of a soft drink when it should be free. The common Filipinos do not benefit from the privatization of the water system. The ones who are smiling with this are the private sectors and the distributors of overpriced drinking water. It is so coincendental that these sectors are closely related with the government. Why is the government so eager to pass the power bill? The House of Representatives has stayed awake until three in the morning just to approve it. The Senate did not pave any roadblocks for it to pass smoothly. The president signs the bill without listening to the very people who will experience the effects of it. These actions of the government are similar when it approves the privatization of the National Waterworks System. Is this the new politics the current government promised to the people during its installment at Edsa? The power bill can work but not in this country yet. The privatization of the power industry will only make the rich a lot richer and of course the poor be poorer. The corrupt mentality of traditional politicians will only strengthen this status quo. The power bill will only bring smiles to the rich and the politicians who have helped approve it. The common Filipinos will remain the defenseless victims of a decaying government system moreover society. If you do not believe this, check out the current development of the privatization of the National Waterworks System. Chuck Gutierrez |
