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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider Solon prods Comelec, DOE to prevent election day power outages

Solon prods Comelec, DOE to prevent election day power outages

Published Apr 3, 2022 12:06 pm

Echoing the call of numerous concerned parties, Quezon City 5th district Rep. Alfred Vargas has prodded the Commission on Elections (Comelec) and the Department of Energy (DOE) to prevent the possibility of power outages on May 9, the day of the 2022 national elections.

File photo

“The risk of unstable power supplies to our schools should be treated with great concern, especially as brownouts during election day have been historically viewed as badges of electoral fraud,” Vargas said in a statement on Sunday, April 3.

Vargas said that he filed a House resolution detailing his worry about the possibility of rotational brownouts taking place throughout the country, particularly in Luzon.

He cited a DOE report which projects that the power consumption in the last week of May will be at about 12,387 megawatts (MW), an increase of 747 MW compared to the end of May 2021.

Meanwhile, according to the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) which handles the country’s state-owned power grid, Luzon usually experiences sparse power supply during the dry months due to increased usage.

Typically, the Philippines’ “hot dry” season lasts from March until May as per Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA).

“The security and integrity of the 2022 Elections are intrinsically tied to the integrity of electronic voting counting machines (VCMs) and other electronic devices, and the unimpeded operation and administration of the elections in the polling centers require a stable and dependable power source,” Vargas added.

He also proposed the review of the power infrastructure of schools that will be used as polling areas for the elections.

There are 36 days left until the May 9 national elections.

Related Tags

Alfred Vargas ELECTION power outages Comelec DOE
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