In my mother’s hometown, a tropical island surrounded by crystal-clear blue waters, delivery of the basic services to the people is not much a necessity. And most of the local folks are used to it. Except for one: Electricity.
For many decades, the coastal towns that ringed the island didn’t have much choice but to survive on the reflections of the moonlit nights. In most homes, primitive lamps fed by coconut oil and kerosene dot most homes. Those who can afford to buy a gas-fed lantern, can do so at their own expense. The roads were muddy during the rainy season and dusty in summer. But the local residents got used to it. Those who suffered most were the students who had to hike twelve kilometers daily to get the education they needed.
Despite the island’s laidback setting, the people were happy and contented with what they have. Then, it wasn’t long after when the national government took notice of its dire need for electricity, which was meant to supply power to the lone medicare hospital in the island. And that when the problems began for the local folks. The power being supplied by the National Power Corporation, a white elephant whose huge losses were taking a heavy toll on the government’s resources.
Aside from the fat salaries of NPC employees, the power corporation seemed not making so much money to repay its loans. Thus, the government has to bear the extra burden as its guarantor. As far as I am concerned, and if my good memory serves me well, the island has big potentials for developing alternative energy sources that can be generated from the wind and heat of the sun. A non-government organization had introduced the use of solar power to heat the local homes, and nothing more. Although tapping wind power has not been tried yet.
Comparatively, the power sourced from the NPC is very much expensive, even if the monthly utilities for power consumption per household is flat rate. This is because the electricity is provided by a big generator, which is not only noise pollutant, but also air pollutant at the same time, considering that it uses diesel fuel to run the generator on a twelve-hour shift. However, it goes on a 24-hour shift during fiestas, when merry-making activities last until dawn.
If a much cleaner alternative power sources can be developed, perhaps, power consumption in the town of Maripipi, Biliran, may be reduced greatly, thus benefitting the poor pockets of ordinary residents.