CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY -- A coalition of groups advocating renewable energy has launched a campaign to highlight the importance of using affordable and clean power, especially during the holidays.
Power 4 People (P4P) said the "12 Days of Christmas with CARE" or "Clean, Affordable, and Renewable Energy" aims to rally policymakers and the general public to conserve power by opting for renewable sources, such as solar energy.
One of the organizers, engineer David Tauli, said the group intends to raise awareness on the promise of clean affordable, and renewable energy among consumers and government officials.
In particular, Tauli said they are advocating the widespread use of solar energy, and hydroelectric-based power, which he noted are cheaper and cleaner compared to coal and power produced by diesel-fired plants.
Rara Ada, a representive for the Youth for Climate Justice that forms part of the P4P, called on the youth "to take action and to think of the increasing rate of electricity here in Mindanao."
"Mga kabatan-unan karon, sa musugot mo sa dili, puhon kita na mismo ang mag bayad og kuryente, sa mo sugot mo sa dili, naga taas na ang consumption og ang atong panginahanglan sa kuryente (Today's youth, whether you agree or not, will soon pay the rising rates of electricity, and whether you agree or not, our power consumption will only get higher)," Ada said during the launch on Thursday.
In a statement, P4P called out the "continued preference for dirty, costly energy from coal," even arguing that coal power contracts entered into by electric cooperatives were supposedly onerous to the paying public.
Another organizer, Inday Gonzales, said environmental protection is another reason to focus on clean energy lest the children "will suffer the consequences."
"We are suffering the effects of Climate Change and it’s time to end it," she said. (With reports from Paula Acenas, LJ Bacolod, Jessa Lagahid, and Benedict Talines, USTP-CDO Interns/PNA)
