Iloilo 1st district Rep. Janette Garin (PPAB)

The effects of the massive Western Visayas power outage are becoming more serious with each passing day. 

According to House Deputy Majority Leader Iloilo 1st district Rep. Janette Garin, residents from her province are starting to fall ill due to the extreme heat amid the continued blackout. 

"Ang dami na rin pong nagkakasakit kasi sobrang mainit (A lot of people are now also getting sick because of the extreme heat,” Garin, a former Department of Health (DOH) official, said in an interview with Punto Asintado on Friday, Jan. 5. 

She added that generation sets in hospitals were not enough to provide for their full electricity needs. 

It has been three days since tripings from multiple power plants in the region triggered power interruptions in Iloilo and other parts of Western Visayas. 

Garin had earlier noted that the continuous power outage had affected the local economy, the livelihood of fishermen, and output-based work force. 

“Ang problema ‘yung iba hindi nakakapagnegosyo ay nawawalan ng kita (The problem is that others haven't been able to carry out their livelihood and are losing money)," the ranking solon said. 

Iloilo City Mayor Jerry Treñas--citing data from Local Economic Development and Investment Promotion Office (LEDIPO)--said that the city has lost a total of P1.5 billion because of the blackout. 

Garin, who is in Iloilo, mentioned that power providers had vowed to resolve the problem on Friday. However, electricity had yet to be restored by Friday noon. 

“Adding insult to injury is the constant finger pointing between NGCP (National Grid Corporation of the Philippines) and the power generators. Ang mahal mahal na nga ng kuryente, hindi mo naman maramdaman yung quality of service,” Garin added. 

(The cost of electricity is so high, and yet you can't even feel the quality of service.) 

The House Committee on Energy is scheduled to hold an investigation on the Western Visayas blackout on Jan. 11. 

Garin vowed to hold accountable those responsible for the widespread power outage.