BY MARY JOY CAVAÑAS
ILOILO City – Mayor Jerry Treñas, who attended virtually yesterday’s Senate hearing on last week’s blackout, expressed his frustration.
“Unfortunately, some of our friends in the legislature were trying to help defend those guilty,” Treñas said.
He was referring to the April 2023 blackout that the Senate energy committee probed last year.
“The last time, nothing happened. No one was held accountable,” Treñas lamented.
For last week’s repeat of last year’s blackout, Iloilo City lost an estimated P2 billion.
“Who is going to pay for this? We are looking for accountabilities; we are not going to sit down this time and just listen to all these inquiries…This time we will not allow those people who are responsible to get away with this,” said Treñas.
Treñas, acknowledging Sen. Raffy Tulfo – chairman of the Senate energy committee – for the hearing, cited that classes and work have been interrupted and its effects were irreversible.
“Who can afford to smile when you have to sleep in plazas, barangay gyms, or the esplanade because of prolonged brownouts turning houses into hot ovens? Who can afford to smile if your loved ones with medical conditions who supposedly need a comfortable environment are suffering from inconvenience and discomfort due to the rising temperature?” Treñas said.
To address simultaneous concerns, the city has set up charging stations in different areas to ensure connectivity, he added.
Classes and work were suspended for four days. City hall services were interrupted, and local businesses were adversely affected.
“This is the second time that we have suffered prolonged blackouts and brownouts. We do not deserve this! No one deserves this! And I ask everyone present here: Are you willing to have a four-day blackout? Because I will give you a medal,” he said.
“As the chairman of the Infrastructure Development Committee of the Regional Development Council of Western Visayas, I am angry for the suffering of our beloved Ilonggos and the rest of Western Visayas, people affected by this region-wide power outage,” the city mayor said./PN
