Let us cut through the chase. The data we cite are factual. All are verifiable. All are available to the energy officials responsible for the seesaw declarations on the energy situation.
In Luzon, there is no shortage of generating capacity. The shortages are artificial. The rotating brownouts are the result of unavoidable events and avoidable incompetence.
The unavoidable events are the boiler leaks of two base load facilities, repairs for a third and low lake levels for a fourth. One leak occurred in one of the two 300 megawatt units of the relatively state-of-the-art Masinloc plant. The other, in one of the two 600 megawatt units of the Sual plant. One unit of Calaca’s two 300 megawatt units necessitated repairs while the Kalayaan 684.6 megawatt hydroelectric plant bogged down due to low water heads.
Because the three thermal plants are configured with two units each downtime in any one takes off line as much as 300 megawatts to 600 megawatts.
Avoidable incompetence, however, stems from government’s failure to coordinate the simultaneous maintenance of four other critical plants as Sual, Masinloc, Calaca and Kalayaan were being repaired.
The problem lies with competent coordination. Operated by independent power producers (IPP), the option to temporarily take offline lies with individual managers. This does not mean energy officials cannot coordinate to avoid outages where the combined offline capacities remain within requisite reserves.
Where reserves should equal the largest unit employed within a grid, as a function of Sual’s configuration, Luzon’s is 600 megawatts. Prior to Sual, Masinloc, Calaca and Kalayaan’s repairs reserves were 812 megawatts. Reserves vanished when the four went offline, falling deeper considering four more undergoing maintenance. Never mind that 242 megawatts lay dormant off Navotas with 110 megawatts more in Subic.
In the Visayas, there is no shortage of generating capacity.
Two plants, each with 72 megawatts of dependable capacity, one coming online within two weeks albeit already partially dispatching, another 72 megawatts by May, plus a maximum of 400 megawatts from the recently balanced Leyte-Cebu submarine cable all transform the Cebu grid into a net electricity exporter allowing dispatches to Luzon.
By 2011 another 200 megawatts will come online. As larger generating units operate reserve requisites move up. Visayan requisites spring from 82 to 100 megawatts. This compels competent reserve management sorely absent in Luzon.
Against all these, Mindanao presents a short-term problem which raises specters of corruption given latent railroading for emergency powers that junk bidding safeguards.
Mindanao is unique. Supply is concentrated in the north while demand is in the south. Mindanao’s non-hydroelectric IPPs have an 88% average dependable capacity that accounts for only 43.67% of total when operating at rated levels. The grid is 56.33% hydroelectric where inherent lower tariffs are disincentives for non-hydroelectric and peaking generators. Mindanao also has a relatively expensive geothermal source due to its high front-end financial carry.
The El Nino temporarily reduced dependable hydroelectric capacities to 19.7% from their rated capacities with the Agus II unit lowest at 6.0% and Pulangui IV highest at 38%. Because Agus is a cascading complex accounting for 76% of Mindanao’s hydroelectric supply its 10.48% average dependable capacity is significant when averages are weighted.
Mindanao’s 578 megawatt generating deficiency is partly-artificial and temporary. It is the result of natural causes, myopia and incompetence. There are dormant installed capacities, some in the wrong places. When we add ludicrous solutions like emergency powers, we might likewise be adding corruption to the chemistry.
The El Nino phenomenon is predictable. Officials knew it would hit way back in mid-2007. Perhaps lights at the energy department were dimmed a tad too low.
It only takes two to three months to tow the four Navotas 242 megawatt barges, moor and berth them in Davao. There was enough time to sign transition supply contracts for the two privatized 100 megawatt barges in each of Nasipit, Agusan and Davao. There was enough time to settle tax issues over the 35 megawatt facility in Iligan, dispatch peak power from a total of 56 megawatts from embedded private generators and dredge the silted Pulangui Lake thus upgrading 87 megawatts to at least 200 megawatts. Sans the dredging, these total at least 533 megawatts currently feasible and enough to prevent 8 – 24 hour outages.
These solutions are workable right now. These do not require corruption-prone emergency powers that offer monetary windfalls for middlemen. Unfortunately, they require competent management from our officials – perhaps a tall order where illuminating cranial wattages are dim and getting even dimmer.
Popularity: 2% [?]
Mis-governance? Mismanagement? What’s new in this administration?
Dear Bert,
What’s new is that they have this rare talent for seeking new and deeper depths to sink to.
Dean
Yes, Dean, into the quicksand, down, down, down, pulling down the country with them.
“The shortages are artificial.”
artificial? not the right world, unless you have evidence of collusion to shut down powerplants.
Dear GabbyD,
Check out the sentence you edited out. The shortages refer to generating capacity and not supply. Here is no shortage of generating capacity. When the word artificial is used in that context then the capacity shortage is artificial where shortages are created by breakdowns and mismanagement.
The problem you refer to are supply shortages. In the industry, we differentiate between capacity and supply.
BTW, don’t you mean “word”?
On the collusion to shut down plants, the NGO’s are talking about it where a case is being made to have take-or-pay contracts again for the Laiban dam facility and its imbedded power plant.
Check out the WESM bids and you might find them there. Unfortunately,
Discussing those would take me beyond my 750 “world” (oops.)limit.
Dean
maybe this is just a semantic difference.
i define artificial shortage as a shortage that would not exist if it were not due to the actions of individuals. its an unnecessary shortage, in other words.
natural shortages are shortages that arent due to human action. natural shortages are shortages that cant be solved, short of fixing the problems/building new plants.
from what you describe, the plants suffered an accident , which u described as “The unavoidable events”. by ANY definition, thats not artificial. its a real, if temporary, shortage.
you claim that its also mismanagement. i concede– if its mismanagement, then its definitely artificial coz its a shortage that need not exist. but its not clear, from the blog, that there is mismanagement (other than ur assertion).
what could they have done to stop an “unavoidable event”? by definition, plants break down sometimes.
reserve mgt: you say “Where reserves should equal the largest unit employed within a grid, ”
i interpret to mean: if the largest unit breaks down, then there are extra reserves available so there’s no interruption. correct?
BUT 4 plants fell (masinloc, sual, etc). from my addtion, 1800MW fell offline.
but according to your rule, there should be at least 700 MW only as reserve, right? (i.e. the size of the largest single unit)
Dean, can you explain how the so-called “committed deliveries” enter into the play?
Lila, Cocoy,
I spent the better part of a week on AP defending the editorial policies of FV, which they term censorship. I got called a lot of bad names, for sure, and rather determined that they are more totalitarian than any judicious editor would ever be, even one with a bias. So I am a part of your choir.
My point is simple. Action means more than words. So keep writing intelligent pieces, and intelligent people will follow. I did not like Lila’s observation that FV has gone downhill.
A lot of good people contribute to the best of their ability.
Joe
Manong Dean, The first order of business is to remove that dimwitted and arrogant Angelo Reyes who struts around as if every other Filipino is his foot soldier.
Kuya Ding,
Mahirap talaga pag “desk” general. Kailangan pasigaw-sigaw at paasta-asta para lamang irespeto.
Mahirap din and magpa-baritone ng boses kapag nag-uutos. Kailangan may hangin na iniipon.
Soti Dean
Manong gabbyD,
The reserve rule is embodied in the Grid Code drafted and eventually passed.
I find Masinloc and Sual’s breakdwon a bit strange. A week ago, Sual shut down because they rejected the coal delivered to them as of inferior quality. The Sual plant is also state-of-the=art like Masinloc. It can accept even the dirtiest coal. the coal delivered to it was Aussie coal from the same suppliers that supplied Masinloc, Mauban and another Marubeni plant in Quezon.
The four units that fell are Sual I (600mw), Masinloc I (300mw), Calaca I (300) and Kalayaan ( I can’t remember which unit. It is part of the CBK (Caliraya, Botocan, Kalayaan complex. Sual is back online.
Kalayaan is hydroelectric where the water falls, turns turbines, and then is recirculated in an artificial lake to be rechanneled to the turbines)
Dean
here we are talking about incompetence in running ordinary power plants…what more if we open BNPP…to those who are considering nuclear power, my question is do we have ESTABLISHED nuclear technology? or are we competent enough to start and sustain it?…i think we should learn first how to start a fire by rubbing sticks…
Right!
Dean
When you foresee a problem, the action is to solve it.
I disagree that lack of Pinoys-in-Pinas with advanced degrees in nuclear plant management should be reason not to build the plant. Technically-competent staff is a problem that can be solved as the nuclear plant is being built, worst-case is to hire foreigners for the first 5 years of the nuke plant’s operations while Mar Roxas’ or Enrile’s nephews (or whoever they recommend) are sent abroad on scholarships.
Dean,
I very much appreciate the particulars of this. I think if people could look forward as thoroughly as they look back, there would not be so many problems. Whipping out one of my famous generalizations, which unfairly paint the good with the bad, it seems that there is more energy, of the mental kind, expended rationalizing our current (haha) predicament, than working out stepwise what needs to be done to operate well in the future.
You have set forth the good, the bad, and the ugly . . .
Joe
Dear Joe,
I presented those in the essay as solutions to the Power Commission last Monday after discussing the matter with a commissioner of the Energy regulatory Commission. Some senators listened. At least those who understood the issues.
Dean
Lakay Ding,
Kung natatandaan mo pa, nuong isang taon sabi mo na maari kang mamamagitan sa aming kaunting hidwaan nina Kalihim Angie. Matagal na kasi kaming hindi naguusap at pilit na tinatarayan ako hindi lamang sa usapang elektrisidad kundi sa langis at sa mga pangyayari sa Taguig.
Na-empleyo namin sa aming maliit na kompanya and isa sa kanyang pinakamahusay na tauhan at siguro, iyan ay nakasama pa sa aming dating samahan.
Tama ka. Oras na magpahinga si Angie para namang makahinga naman tayo sa mga kahirapa’y dulot ng kanyang pagmamatigas sa industriya ng langis at kuryente. Ang pumipigil dito ay ang maling paniniwala niya na siya ay mabuting kawal kapag siya ay nananatili sa tabi ng kanyang amo.
Hindi ‘iyan ang pagiisip ng isang mabuti at desididong heneral. Iyan ang paniniwala ng isang hamak na sarhento. Ang kaibigan mo ay isang kawal. Siya ‘yung “foot soldier”.
Soting Dekano
Further Manong,
You know as others do that the cross ownership conflicts allowed in EPIRA has hobbled WESM operations from Day ! and unless this defect in the law is addressed the suspicions of capacity being witheld will fester to the detriment of public interest.
Lakay Ding,
The traders at WESM are all in a small room sitting back to back. They eat together in the same lunch room, and all use the same toilet, and yet they are expected to be competeing with each other in the spot market.
If you check out the recent bids posted by each, all are below capacity and way below demand. I can understand that would happen for the hydros because of low water levels. But the major bids from the thermal units are also low. By posting low selling bids, supply in the WESM will likewise be low.
Even a sophomore in economics would know that low supplies (real or simply bidded in a spot market) create greater demand and thus push tarriffs up.
Dean
Dean, I see you are very knowledgeable with energy. Remember Ralph Recto once accused Reyes of incompetence? I believe the rift was about gasoline pricing formulae. Can not DOE establish some kind of a table that can be used to determine pricing adjustments whenever there is a movement in exchange rate or crude prices? For example, if the price of crude moves up from $75 to $80 gasoline price should be P42 per liter. It would be like a calibrated pricing mechanism. Can you educate me on this?
They can and they should. The rules of thumb would however be made more complicated by inventory pricing where old stock are bought and priced differently. That’s further complicated by the two refiners since their tank farms have different capacities and one, Petron is newer and cracks heavy fuels while Shell buys cracked fuels for blending. Another player, Flying V blends imports with local fuels from Palawan, while Caltex buys from Singapore. The different products have different prices too.
But its all just math and the DOE should and must develop a mathematical model. The problem is that they didnt. In fact they are looking only at pump prices when pricing differs as to processing, tank capacities and inventor, even as to loaction. Petron is in Bataan. Shell and Caltex are in Batangas. Flying V’s tank farms are in Mindanao. Iba iba ang transport costs to bring these to Manila.
Dean
Thanks. Medyo nga komplikado. Pero pwede siguro ignore na lang ang inventory, anyway may self-adjustment naman after moving out the old one. At saka yong inter-refiner pricing, I recall from my audit of some of the big oil companies they have a system of “borrowing” oil stock, and the pricing used was ex-Manila.
Hindi pala magaling na Heneral si Angie dahil hindi niya na-Sun Tzu ito. Di po ba sa kapitolyo 3 ng babasahin ng mga sundalo ang aral ay “know thy El Nino”
Duda na kasi ako sa mga produkto ng Kennedy School of Government ng “Harvard”. Hindi naman kasi totoong “Harvard” yan dahel natanggap kahit sino dahil carrot stick yan para sa mga pulitiko.
Dear Nashman,
The school is on the other side of the creek at Harvard and there’s a reason for that. Para sa mga government officials it’s really just a seminar place specially when they go there and take the short courses as did Angie.
Unfortunately, even graduates of the short courses are granted nice looking maroon-bordered diploma’s they can hang on walls behind their desks just to show everyone how intelligent they are.
Dean
Dear nashman,
Reyes was also a product of AIM Class 79. His classmates said that he was quiet most of the time.
While silent waters run deep, in this case there must have been an echo. Either that or sound does not travel in a vacuum.
Dean
Sorry, Dean. But my mind is still spinning reading about the short analytical synopsis on Mindanao.
We just got back from an “unscheduled” brownout which I blame on the crazy scheduling of the local power company. It appears their published schedules are meant to be changed without notice, and on a daily basis.
Anyway, read about the barges some days back. Learned Aboitiz bought them. Implications for us here in the north?
You said Mindanao’s problem is partly artificial and temporary. Any bets on how temporary, even when those responsible sit on their hands?
The barges were bought by Aboitiz but there was no transition supply contract (TSC). There is still time to negotiate those so that the barges can supply the grid with at least 200 mw. Since the barges are in Agusan and Davao Oriental, and since they are diesel, they they will supply peaking power to the south, specifically Davao.
Technically this should free up the power that is imported by the south from the north. The Steag 220mw plants in Cagayan de Oro should first satisfy the requirements of the north before being exported to the south. Also in the north is a 35mw plant in Iligan and another thermal owned by Alsons. The 35mw is not operating due to a legal and tax issue.
These thermals are expensive to run because they are fueled with either coal or diesel. But then they are existing capacities and I hear that they will be dispatched soon. Mahal nga lang.
Dean
If by Iligan you meant the Maria Cristina hydro whose capacities have been significantly diminished by water levels in the lake, then we expect our condition to tarry for a while. Even granting that the barges have already been put on-line, which I doubt they are at this time since the news about the sale came out only recently.
And it is ironic to note that as late as January, rain was plentiful enough to flood some of our cities here in the north.
And growing up in the north, yes we assumed generated power in the area was meant for our needs, not those in faraway Davao.
By Iligan I meant the small 35mw barge owned by Napocor.
Dean
Dean:
Media in our fair city talks about nothing but power shortages and loss of productive capacities in business and industrial sectors as a result.
Personally what stands out glaringly is the reach and exposure of Aboitiz in power generation in Mindanao and Visayas. And maybe Luzon? Reach and exposure as owners and/or partners in companies/ventures engaged in power generation. And distribution? This aside from interisland shipping and cargo forwarding. And banking?
Latest news was the launching a new power plant in Cebu with, tada, GMA in attendance. Their connections?
“Knowledge is Power.” To establish a grid power supply also, as you have stated.
This administration should maintain, conduct, test and, appropriating of power distribution on the large scale.
Here in California State, power supply agencies conducts and, test their power support/supply on the large scale. By means of, borrowing power supply from our neighboring States, such as Oregon, Nevada, to name a few.
These TEST are regulated by the “States” and, its administrations.
So, when we have brownouts, it only last for atleast a couple of seconds. And, when we do have blackouts, on a rare occasion. We run around in the dark for some fun. LOL . . . !
Dear Mario,
In the last hearing of the Power Commission, a former NPC president testified that the NPC does not even have list of the deoendable capacities of power plants.
I know that plants are tested once a year. I really dont know why there’s no list.
Dean
Our leaders cannot escape the products of their INCOMPETENCE.
Manong Dean,
Am missing how Lassi is thinking about how the energy sector is being mismanaged…
Pinahiya nila si Lasse and practically drove him out and back to Cebu. We are still in touch though.
Dean
Yes, I know. Sad that it happened. Now WESM seems it’s being run like an old boys club.
“…that offer monetary windfalls for middlemen.”
Let’s hope not. The IPPs and the associated take-or-pay contracts, while alleviating the brownouts in the 1990s, were a big rip-off.
Kung baga, kinoryente natin ang sarili natin.
“When cranial wattages are dim and becoming even dimmer” – to describe the kind of mismanagement if not incompetence on the part of the cognizant public officials, where then would the policy thrusts be to resolve, once and for all, occuring or soon-occuring power shortages across the grid?
It happens all the time. People suffer from myopia and yet their chronic love for their patron (cult of personality) endear them to that sole occupant in Malacanang. I hope Dean is not seeing things from the mere periphery.
Hi Primer,
I was refering to the General who went to the JFK school and AIM.
Dean
Showing next: sweetheart deals for ‘emergency’ power facilities as the GMA Mafia exits.
Electricity is an essential human right( human need). No electricity means water certainly will not come from a tap. It’s transported in cans, on heads or shoulders, possibly for miles. It comes from rivers and lakes that are permeated with eroded soil and hazardous bacteria. Drinking it frequently carries dysentery and other diseases that will kill. No electricity also means kids and women be compelled to consume hours each day in the drudgery of gathering firewood or knee bending in mud threaded with animal feces and pee, to gather, dried and store manure for baking and light. There’s short time to go to school or take part in more enjoyable or profitable economic activities. Hospital power can go off halfway point of surgery, and refrigerators can close down for hours in 110-degree heat, resulting in vaccines and medicines to deteriorate, without anyone recognizing they are now worthless.
No electricity means having to lean on wood also ruins the environment. Wood burning is an initial cause of urban sky pollution or brown cloud.
Plentiful, dependable and affordable electricity is critical to bigger opportunity, luxury, health and environmental quality. I guess pinoys desire to be cased like a museum?
It is the government’s role to ensure security of supply and encourage free market model thru competition among IPP providers.
When is humna right going to exist in this country? It’s definitely not a Noynoy presidency :)
Electricity, human right, not a Noynoy presidency.
Duh, is there coherence in there somewhere? Ang labo mo Tita.
well, leytenian is rabidly against Noynoy..imeldific siguro cia
There should be a budget alleviation for avoidable incompetence. I bet officials would be hesitant to grab money from that one.
I love the title of this post. Pure genius
You know the candidacy for the Primay Election. But, if you pick the Old Trapos back into Congress. Pinoy-in-Pinas, it’s gonna get a lot “DIMMER“
Thanks.
Dean
How do you remedy the non coordination of people handling the power
industry? And the incompetence of the leaders we elected? This is
a 100 pesos question, at inflationary rate value…
Good piece, Dean. Thanks for keeping up the standards in this (rapidly degenerating) site and giving us something besides polemics and predictable mud-slinging to chew on. Nice to learn something new once in a while. Spot on about Mindanao. Thanks.
Lila,
The site degenerates when intelligent people do not commit to building it, and when the editor quits, and when it is no one’s top priority.
Joe
Perhaps u should speak for yourself, Joe. Three people (Ding, Cocoy and myself) sat down for many hours trying to figure out how to make this site a more interesting and valuable site. Everybody whose contact info Cocoy had was invited. No one else bothered to show up.
I didn’t get the sense that the feedback from the group was a huge priority. Ideally, everybody should be putting in a similar level of commitment, right? Cocoy was only one of the editors/contributors. Eventually, even the most committed people lose interest.
When a site pretends to be speaking for the Filipino people, when in fact it does not, it will naturally degenerate in the long run.
We call it hypocrisy.
@neil
when did they say they spoke for the filipino people?
@GabbyD: Since they claimed this: “Filipino Voices is more than a blog, it’s a start to the growing power of The Filipino to manifest his own destiny in the online world…”
http://filipinovoices.com/about
Dean: i disagree with you when you say that there is no crisis or that competent cooperation is the one to blame. the details, i wrote over at the philippine online chronicles’ blogwatch section, “explaining the power crisis.”
That said, i agree with you that to evoke emergency powers as per EPIRA section 71 is ludicrous.
I apologize to Dean Dela Paz for this minor hijack and out of topic response.
Dear Joe,
I do not need to justify what i have done for this site since its inception. The record speaks for itself. I take issue when people comment on an internal matter that they have no inkling about. No context by which to base their comment. i’ve agreed to keep quiet in public about my reasons for leaving. Truth be told this is the first time back to this site and I can tell you it leaves a bitter taste in my mouth.
I thank Lila for explaining a bit. i appreciate it.
Joe, i’ve very much been enjoying writing and running my technology channel over at the philippine online chronicles. Some of us are just quietly happy writing more about technology than politics. Some of us are happily engaged to building things for this country rather than just talk about it. Some of us are willing to take a stand and to commit ourselves into an endeavor because we want to change things. Some of you believe that this site is the greatest thing in the world. I’m sorry to say that that is a myopic view.
C
Cocoy,
I’m afraid I did not explain myself well. I admire the effort you have given to FV, and the discussions you provoked. If I were to take a shot at any one, it would be the Anti-Pinoy crowd who break off into their own clan rather than work to “build a nation”. I do think, also, water seeks its own level, and a site will rise or fall as it will.
I can only speak for myself. I keep writing here because the views are varied, the editorial position is reasonable, and it better represents the “community”. It is my commitment to improve my understanding of things Filipino, improve my writing, offer what insights I can provide, and support the community.
If Lila says the site is going downhill, that seems to me to be her view, and she COULD take responsibility by being patient and writing through thick and thin.
Joe
Joe, we can all walk away from this site any time — everyone here has other options. The fact that I have continued to engage speaks for itself, don’t u think? I continue to keep up with the posts that interest me but choose not to waste time on sections that essentially consist of name-calling, that’s all. Regardless of who’s doing it or to what end, I find no intellectual value in it whatsoever.
FYI, I’ve been working on a research piece on a politician for some time now and I will release it at the proper time and place. I prefer to write blogs that consist of research rather than just blogging about my opinion, but that’s just me.
As an editor, I take editorial work very seriously. So when people go around calling each other conos and maggots here, it’s not really my job to call these guys on it: in my humble opinion, that’s the editor’s job. I’m not only referring to people who call me names, but people who do it to other people and each other as well. It’s not my sensibilities that r offended (students of literature get to read pretty much everything at this point, so none of this language is by any means new or original, so let’s not start invoking Burroughs or Miller here); but I do lose respect for those who engage in this sort of thing, as apparently do many of our readers.
One observation I have about Bong, Ben K and others in AP is that they attack the PERSON rather than the IDEA. In my view, that’s a grave intellectual weakness ( and a clear indication of poor academic training) because human beings r not the sum total of their ideas on specific issues alone. U throw out the baby with the bathwater that way and make it impossible to work with others in the future. If u want to build a better country, then u have to be prepared to work with people of all sorts of persuasions, even those who hold very different points of view. Personally, I’m quite inclusive and am perfectly happy to work in coalitions myself. To me, difference is not a problem but a potentially rich site for exchange. After the May elections, there will still be a lot of work for all of us to do, and hopefully most will be able to work together.
I would hope that FV would be A CUT ABOVE AP, which pretty much preaches to the converted and to those who r generally resentful of the (perceived) mainstream anyway, and apparently doesn’t get too many new readers. I understand that the mainstream Perlas camp isn’t too happy with their tactics, for example. In Gordon’s case, of course, there r family relations to consider in Ben’s case, but I know he’s turning off some Gordon supporters because some of them happen to be my friends.
I would hope that we define ourselves precisely by being a site that doesn’t resort to name-calling and takes the high road by sticking to substantive issues. When I say it’s degenerating, I’m saying it’s starting to sound like AP around here once in a while and, regardless of the topic, that’s a turn-off to our more educated readers. I would hope that the editor makes time to moderate (and by this I don’t mean kicking people out but just calling them on it politely when they start getting personal or stray too far off the point) and that the rest of us do what we can to keep the standards here as high as possible.
P.S. Bong had been saying all sorts of things about my Mom and me (and Cory, who is routinely referred to as a b…ch, as am I). He also referred to me as a Bombay, etc, which doesn’t offend me because i’m very proud to be half-Indian ;-) but will observe that the intent and tone was clearly RACIST and SEXIST. Some of them have also been pretty homophobic to others. If AP likes that sort of thing and doesn’t put a stop to it, then that’s AP — what can I say? But for all his claims about his personal experience of my arrogance, etc, he admitted in the end that HE HAS NEVER MET ME OR MY MOTHER, despite everything he might have previously claimed. While he shares my letters to him (through R) openly on AP, I have had the courtesy not to share his here without his permission, even tho I could easily do so. But I refuse to go down to his level. He even tried to apologize to me but had to say I was onion-skinned at the same time (why bother to apologize then?) even when I had never even asked for an apology in the first place. But I can’t control the many people who r apparently outraged on my behalf and have yet to move on. To me, it’s not about pay back because the quality of my work speaks for itself and I think many readers understand that. In the meantime, I can’t worry about the tone in AP or FV anymore because I have too much other work to do.
Dear Joe,
Lila’s observation is spot on.
C
P.S. One thing u might want to ask your buddies in AP, Joe: why do they only attack women and gay men? Buraot has written at least THREE pieces critiquing Gordon and they haven’t once commented on his stuff. Is it because he’s an Olongapo insider and can call their bluff? There r also quite a few straight men who support Noynoy that we notice they pretty much leave alone. FYI, I’m not the sort of person who can ever be bullied. The fact that I can openly disagree with my uncle on specific issues while agreeing with him on others should indicate that I’m not the sort who gets intimidated by anybody. It’s not about arrogance but about feeling peaceful about where I’m coming from. But u do have to wonder at men who only pick on women and gay men in general, don’t u think?
Lila, Cocoy,
I spent the better part of a week on AP defending the editorial policies of FV, which they term censorship. I got called a lot of bad names, for sure, and rather determined that they are more totalitarian than any judicious editor would ever be, even one with a bias. So I am a part of your choir.
My point is simple. Action means more than words. So keep writing intelligent pieces, and intelligent people will follow. I did not like Lila’s observation that FV has gone downhill.
A lot of good people contribute to the best of their ability.
Joe
joe?
could you send me an email?
i want to take this conversation private.
you can drop me a line at cocoy [dot] dayao @ gmail [dot] com
C
Joe America,
I have deep respect for people like you…
I’m glad that you can see through this… as a reader, at least I see a lil positivity..
it’s just sad that some people ransack this thread not to give their insights about the great article made by Dean but for their own selfish motives..
I rarely comment but I just had to thank you for being fair & for not being swayed… :)
And I don’t have much regard for passive aggressive behavior. If people have something to say, they should just say it directly to the person involved.
No one was interested in hijacking Dean’s excellent post. Both Cocoy and I have already apologized to him. If Coy has left FV, it doesn’t mean I will. Our response to the situation is different, so kindly don’t make any assumptions. The fact that I’m even writing here indicates a level of commitment, surely. I certainly haven’t seen anything from u before. Besides, we should all be educated enough to take constructive criticism when it is being made respectfully, rather than react in a knee-jerk fashion that can only read as defensive. So let’s all chill out, shall we? It’s a great site, the contributors r great, etc, etc. But, once in a while, a little moderation would be appreciated, that’s all.
If that notion were so wrong, Nick wouldn’t have written me to apologize and to agree with that general sentiment. In future, it might be a good idea for u to get all your facts first.
Next topic.
Roch,
Thank you for your thoughtful remark. Made my day . . .
Joe
Dear Dean and Roch,
First off: i’ve already mentioned by i disagreed with Dean on this one. It isn’t one of his better works. truth be told, this “energy crisis,” is more complex than any of us who have written about it thus far have unravelled. you must take EPIRA law into account. You must take what the distributors are doing and you must account for the power producers. you must also take into account the political dynamics. And that’s still the tip of the iceberg. While i didn’t write it all, you can check out “explaining the power crisis,” on google.
my point is: dean’s “excellent” post, is not his best post to date and i’m fan.
i do agree with him on a point that to evoke Section 71 of the Law is unwarranted at this juncture. And i explained all that in my own post.
Second:
Now with regard to your “selfish” remark Roch. Seriously, you people want to go to there? huh? i’ve been told what you’ve been ranting about on twitter. i know that’s your coping mechanism when you’re hurt. a good person: they tell me in the face what’s wrong and looks me in the eye to tell me why you hate me so much.
Nick, Joe and everyone on Filipino Voices— i am not beholden to Filipino Voices for anything. i am not Filipino Voices. Why do you people always seem to have in your mind that If i go, this place collapses?
There are more writers out there who will stand up. Better writers.
Why do you people keep on insisting that MY leaving means that this site degenerates? AM I THAT important to you people? Seriously?
I’ve shown you the numbers to PROVE the opposite. i don’t bring traffic. i don’t take traffic.
Can’t you people RESPECT my decision? i’ve carried 160+ articles on this site. I’ve pimped it out across my social networks. I’ve defended this site time and time again. I’ve LOL’d at AP people calling me out names. i’ve blogged here when too few of you did.
I’ve been here when Nick was absent. I’ve manned the fort when too few of you have. I’ve stayed when many of you left. I’ve shown you the numbers. I am not the reason traffic exist here. I am not the reason why traffic will not come here.
That’s my logo you’re using. I’ve asked it to be taken down and you have not.
I do not take kindly to your remarks. This is exactly why people like Benigs create AP.
This is the thanks i get. I want my apology. On this site written by its editor not chief.
My heart’s not in writing for Filipino Voices. that has been a fact far longer than most of you can imagine. There comes a time when one has to leave. This isn’t fun anymore and that was the only reason I blogged here.
I want my apology. On this site written by its editor not chief.
sorry to butt in. i just heard my name. so far i-ve written 5 entries about Gordon. but yep, been waiting for them “big boys” to come, but they won’t. i wonder why.
Dean, my sincere apologies for discussing this here when your post is about something else entirely. Generally, I try to be as disciplined as possible about sticking to the topic…
So I’ll be brief here, Joe. We can always discuss this elsewhere. First, I know you’ve defended us and I’m genuinely appreciate it — thank u. And u r absolutely right that there r a great many people here who do contribute a great deal of valuable insights. Again, my continued engagement with u (u must know you’re one of my favorites by now, don’t u?!) and others speaks for itself.
If the name-calling were solely an AP phenomenon, that would be a different matter. Sadly, I see it all over the Pinoy blogosphere and can sometimes understand why my journalist friends can be so disdainful. I tease them and tell them they’re just jealous they’re being usurped in this digital era, but privately I recognize that, at least among journalists, they r still expected to adhere to certain standards. So: just because u have a computer and can vomit your ideas on a page on a prolific basis (throwing substance, syntax, spelling and basic courtesy out the window), it doesn’t necessarily mean that you’re a great blogger, at least in my book. If there r serious journalists (as opposed to hacks and tabloid types), there r also bloggers who should be taken seriously. I hope we aspire to make FV a place where people come to read a bunch of sharp and kick-ass bloggers.
Again, I’m referring to exchanges such as those between Patricio and Jcc (both Magdalo and this latest one by Patricio; see Jcc’s response), where some of the name-calling is unnecessary, in my view. My apologies to both for bringing them up, but I don’t seem to be getting my point across — hence the specific examples. I’m not annoyed anymore but am just pointing out that that’s the sort of thing an editor could easily be addressing if we were striving to attain a general tone that focuses less on personal attacks and more on substantive differences. This is of course nothing personal against Patricio, Jcc or Nick because I think they do great work otherwise. A cursory look at our comments policy indicates that these issues can be easily addressed.
Again, I DON’T BELIEVE PEOPLE SHOULD BE BANNED OR HAVE THEIR VIEWS CENSORED — I’ve never been one for censorship, period. The only moderation I personally favor is when an editor occasionally comments (very briefly) on an exchange by saying that it’s getting unnecessarily personal or off-topic. Joking around is one thing (I know u guys do that on AP) but remember that not everyone here knows each other or r even friends. But that would require the presence of an active editor. All I’m saying is perhaps Nick might find more time for this or can find someone else who does (I’m sure N’s just very busy). I know that Cocoy was doing the bulk of the work before and was just exhausted by the time he left. Generally, editors divide this sort of thing pretty equally among themselves.
I agree that there have been many excellent contributions here, so I apologize if I might have inadvertently conveyed anything else. But my point was simply that, at the height of election season and since we r a non-partisan blog, we need to be prepared for the fact that there will be differences and possibly conflicts. It’s inevitable. If there’s an active editor present, they can judge for themselves or in tandem with a board of the group’s choosing, that’s all: Ding and Cocoy were in favor of that idea, so no one will say the editors r fascists; with a board, u can have people of different stripes represented). Otherwise, chaos seeks its own level. But, I agree, the vast majority contribute decent stuff.
Don’t worry, I’m writing. I plan to contribute. That’s all I’ll say about it for now.
Lila,
Really, how fast CAN you type? I envision your keyboard smoking.
Don’t worry, I don’t worry . . . about you . . .
Joe
Lila, my apologies once again. I have emailed you regarding the AP issue. And I have responded on their recent attacks as well.
My duties as an editor have been remiss, and I take full responsibility. The buck stops here with me.
I apologize for not acting more swiftly. I sincerely hope your work bears fruit. Godspeed Lila.. may you inspire more passionate Filipinos!
– Nick
Thanks, Nick. It could really be a great site, so let’s just do it.
Kindly explain the background to Rochelle so she has a better understanding of what this ruckus was all about. Tempest in a teapot, really, and can easily be addressed.
Best wishes.
What is a tempest. I know teapot.
Which reminds me, sticking with the subject of this blog, to my great amusement the author, who I think deserves a Pulitzer prize for his writing insights and word use, mixed his metaphor a bit in the first line.
You “cut to the chase” or you “cut through the crap”, but you don’t “cut through the chase”.
Each time I pull up this blog thread, I smile . . .
Joe
@joe
yeah ur right. good eye! haha funny…
Yes, Roch, the people here r not your personal utusans, sorry. Anyone can walk in and out of here whenever they please, and it’s not anyone’s place to tell them otherwise. It’s not as if you’re personally paying anyone’s salary here, dear. So why take Cocoy for granted? The poor guy was practically on the brink of collapse when we met. He didn’t have to say anything at all: I saw with my own eyes how hard he worked on this site and saw how tired he looked when we finally sat down. He deserves a little more credit. People who work a hell of a lot occasionally get tired (u should try it some time; it beats the hell out of gossiping), unlike those who almost never show up and then have the nerve to pass judgment.
I almost never take sides when there r conflicts between people, so this is not about taking Cocoy’s side over Nick’s. I’m sure Nick had valid reasons for being away, and I certainly appreciate his writing either way. My beef with him is a separate issue, and he’s already made efforts to resolve it, which I certainly appreciate. But if u take people for granted and repeatedly ignore their recommendations (at least that’s how Cocoy felt), then u shouldn’t be surprised if they eventually walk away. U passing judgment when you’ve hardly put a stitch of work into this site yourself really seems rather inappropriate, quite frankly. I wasn’t even aware that u were a contributor in the first place. And by that I mean being an actual blogger on FV and not someone with a vicarious interest who happens to be the editor’s girlfriend. Sorry, but everyone here is expected to put in a little real work from time to time, and that would include u.
In cagayan de oro (Northern mindanao) we have power interruptions 6 hours DAILY. I find it hard to believe because we have a nearby coal power plant, even CEPALCO is claiming we have a solar powerplant (SONA 2007 Gloria sad BUILT a solar plant) so it’s funny that we’re the ones having 6-8 hour brown outs while central mindanao and southern mindanao have 1-2 hours only…
Sorry to be off topic but it appears I have little recourse.
Dear Nick,
I sent an article for submission through your e-mail last week and its been several days already.
I sent an e-mail the other day to inquire about that but there has been no response.
Is there a problem about the article that I can rectify if that is what is holding it up?
Sincerely,
justice league
Blackshama and Leytenian,
Cheers. (from the previous thread)
thank you Justice League, I have received it, and will be due for publishing by today.
Nick,
Thank you for your consideration.
I’m actually on the verge of putting out a slightly updated edition but it won’t make it. It can always be put out on the comments section already and I think the article is taxingly long as it is.
Thanks again.
The government should put NAPOCOR into receivership also to include PSALM. Sell off all assets to pay off stranded costs and get the state out of the business of energy. Abolish the ERC too.
Allow the private distributors, the transmission company and the power producers to coordinate supply. On the other hand let the local governments (cities and municipalities) represent consumers in bargaining for power rates.
You cannot have an impoverished national government regulate anything as politicos will simply make it their private milking cows.
“…why do they only attack women and gay men?”
Hmmm, they’re not equal opportunity hooligans. :)
LOL Phil :)
Dear Cocoy,
I agree that the energy situation is infinitely more complex than what I can fit in one and a half pages of bond paper.
Sorry kung kapos ang treatment. As the title suggests, I wanted the DOE to come up with better solutions than emergency rule. I typically keep to 750 words kasi. Also, I’ve presented a power point presentation to the Ateneo de Cagayan de Oro entitled “The Mindanao Blackout Blarney”. that’s a tad more comprehensive and it tackles the transmission issues of having supply in the north and demand in the south.
Regards,
Dean
Dean:
So you were in that gathering on energy last week(?), which I could have attended. And would have had the opportunity to formally introduce myself to you. I spend time very close to Xavier’s grounds.
BTW, brownouts are now daily and no signs of abating.
We have reports that… every sector/city/barangay has to comply with the rotating blackouts… Except for areas with politicians living in them. There are places in Cagayan de Oro na di nakaranas ng rotating blackout dahil the mayor/vice mayor live in them.
Also on sundays, areas with CEPALCO officials have no blackouts at all.
If the there is a need for the rotating blackouts, everyone should share it. Walang exemptions dahil politician ka. In fact politicians should empathic enough and be the first ones to FOLLOW THE LAWS AND POLICIES that national and local government impose.
Dear Unfairness,
In Cagayan de Oro, there are two sources of electricity, CEPALCO which has a gnerating plant and even a small photovoltaic solar panel farm, and the STEAG 220 megawatt coal-fired plant inside the Phividec industrial estate. Combined, if they were to service only cagayan de Oro, they would have an oversupply as the demand in Cagayan de Oro when the port is not operating is merely from 75mw to 100mw.
What I am trying to say is that there should technically be no rotating outages in Cagayan de Oro, including the homes of the CEPALCO officials.
Unfortunately, while the Cagayanons are the ones who inhale the mercury, sulfur and other chemicals spewn by the STEAG plant, the electricty it produces is “exported” south to Davao. Hence, CEPALCO, a private independent producer needs to rotate the outages.
As for the mayor and the CEPALCO officials (who alos control the rotations as they are the distributors)…well, some are more equal than others.
Dean
all i know our last bill was 6000 and the current bill is 9000…its clearer than daylight on a sunny day…meralco is jerkin us over…and we even did that conserve electricity practice….MERALCO..MONKEYS EATING RABIDLY ALL LIFE COMMON ORDINARY PINOYS…MERALCOP ..there is a group on face/book join if you know and feel they are practicing unGodly practices.like eating the common man alive…i did..thats all i can do…to pay a monthly dose of 9000 pesos…i dont !!!….