|
Can we lead normal lives without Meralco? The
question makes people squirm in their seats because the consequences
look daunting. Can Meralco exist without us? It’s their turn to
squirm. But they seem to be laughing instead. They know it will
never happen.
The electric company often keeps
us in the dark with frequent outages. They also abuse our ignorance
of their complicated billing system by raising costs. And they are
quick to cut off the power from our homes but slow to give us refund
for over-billings.
Will Congress even things by
re-imposing the death penalty by electrocution for those abusing the
use of power? If a new law is passed, it means we can also execute
politicians, who abuse their power. Of course, the politicians will
say: “We have the power, but we don’t have the watts.”
Many of us are hostages of our
own lifestyle. We are too dependent on electrical appliances and
gadgets, and without Meralco, we feel helpless. Life can be a big
hassle.
Imagine groping in the dark when
you get home at night. No TV, no refrigerator, no air-conditioner,
no microwave oven, no electric stove. And the wife smiles at you,
the masunurin husband, and says: “No washing machine. You do it by
hand.”
Life without Meralco means going
back to using candles and gas lamps at night and taking down the
blinds and opening the windows when the moon is bright. And the wife
smiles at you, the masunurin husband, and says: “Can you go down
and buy a few things we need at the grocery?
You: “Of course. We’re on
20th floor, but I don’t need the elevator. You know, honey, I need
the exercise.”
Electricity makes life in a
modern home easy and convenient. Cut off the power and the house
will weigh down on its occupants like an oppressor. You should be
quick to pass on the blame to Meralco.
What do you call Meralco when it
pulls the plug from your home because you have not paid your bill?
You: An oppressor.
What do you call Meralco as it
keeps raising its rates so high people cannot avoid the power being
cut off?
You: An oppressor
What do you call Meralco when it
denies it is an oppressor and demands that you pay up or we cut you
off?
You: A monopoly.
Now come allegations by the
Government Service Insurance System that Meralco does not pay its
own electric consumption. It merely passes it on to consumers as
additional charges. They also pass on system’s losses caused by
their inefficiency. And they even pass on leaks due to thief. Hey,
Meralco is good at passing costs. Let’s put them in charge of the
government. Our country will be debt-free.
The passed-on costs to the
consumers run into billions of pesos. But we did not get the
opportunity to pull the plug from Meralco when they failed to pay
their bills. It would have been a great sight: plunging Meralco in
the dark for non-payment of bill.
Will the consumers get their
money back? Well, we know that Meralco is good at passing. We hope
it will not run away once we pass back the costs. From now on our
new buzzwords are: “Catch, Meralco, catch.”
If we liken the situation to a
basketball game, the odds are really against the consumers. The
Meralco team has a good point guard making dazzling behind the back
passes. When the consumer’s team gets the ball it has no one to
pass it to.
Despite the unsettling
revelations about the billions of pesos of additional charges to
consumers, people welcomed the unfolding drama like a denouement of
a gripping “telenovela.” Years of fruitless complaints against
rising cost of electricity and abuse have come out in the open and
are headed for a resolution. It is our turn to laugh.
palaciosjp@sss.gov.ph
|
