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Aside from rice prices, House Speaker Martin Romualdez has also vowed to reduce electricity rates as a way to further ease inflation in the country. 

“We will work to further reduce electricity rates and rice prices. Accomplishing that will surely lead to a further moderation of inflation,” Romualdez said in statement Friday, July 5. 

“Titingnan natin ang posibleng amendments sa EPIRA para maibaba natin yung presyo ng kuryente, para abot kaya ng lahat ‘yung sa tamang presyo,” he said. 

(We will look at the potential amendments to EPIRA in order to bring down electricity rate, so that it becomes affordable to all.) 

EPIRA stands for the Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001. Critics of the law say that it didn't live up to its promise of lowering electricity rates; instead, it caused the opposite. 

The proposed amendments to the EPIRA is currently under technical working group (TWG) /committee deliberations in the House of Representatives.  

Romualdez said the House would try to pass the EPIRA measure during the third regular session of the 19th Congress, particularly before the end of the of year. 

“So medyo kumplikado yan kasi malaki itong batas at we will handle it by sections pero kayang kaya natin tapusin ‘yan before siguro the Christmas break,” added the Leyte 1st district congressman and Lakas-Christian Muslim Democrats (Lakas-CMD) president. 

(So that is a bit complicated because it's an expansive law, we will handle it by sections but we are capable of finishing it probably before the Christmas break.) 

Electricity rates in the country are among the highest in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). 

Romualdez said the amendment of the EPIRA would be preceded by an inquiry into the energy situation. 

“We want to know what is the problem with the law, why the the law that was supposed to streamline the energy sector has unfortunately brought up electricity rates. We will call all stakeholders - power producers and distributors, the transmission company, and most importantly the consumers represented by consumer groups,” he said.