PGMA's Speech during the Energy Conservation Command Conference

PGMA's Speech during the Energy Conservation Command Conference

Rizal Hall, Malacañang (19 August 2005)

Thank you, Secretary Lotilla.

Vice President De Castro, the leaders of the oil industry and the dealers, our members of the Cabinet, heads of agencies, heads of the government GOCCs and state universities and colleges, friends, ladies and gentlemen.

We all know that an oil crisis hovers over us. The price of oil is 63 dollars in the U.S. market today. On the domestic and as Popo showed, it's doubled, more than doubled since last year.

On the domestic side, household budgets will be spread more thinly. Ako ay humihingi ng paumanhin sa sambayanan lalung-lalo na yung mga manggagawa and the transport sectors.

The attitude we need is calm concern, tempered by a keen solidarity and awareness of the best collective means to meet this challenge.

This is a strategic global problem. And I'm directing our secretary of energy to work closely with the secretary of foreign affairs to exert all diplomatic efforts to either get cheaper oil or more stable supply arrangements. We must act globally and locally.

We launched our 'Galing Pilipino' Energy Conservation Program' last June with the support of several important players in the private sector. And one of the most important recommendations we made for the households was to change their bulbs from incandescent to flourescent.

Today, I was... We've lessened the wattages of the ceremonial lights. But today I was walking around the residential portion of Malacañang and the tech... The utility people were changing our lights from incandescent to flourescent.

Several businesses have also responded since that June by providing transport to their workers. And bus operators who were loathe to think of fixed bus terminals and trip scheduling are embracing these ideas. And I encouraged MMDA Chairman Bayani Fernando to continue with this effort.

I thank the oil companies and gasoline station dealers for being here today and supporting our energy efficiency and conservation program. Yung pinirmahan nila kanina was an agreement that the dealers, the gasoline stations will shorten their operating hours. This has been done in Thailand and the estimated savings in consumption in Thailand was 5 percent. So we hope that this important measure will also bring our people to the energy conservation way of life. That's what E.C. stands for -- energy conservation.

And well, I'd like to commend Flying V... I'd be grateful if the different oil gasoline dealers and oil companies would follow the lead of Flying V and carry biodiesel in your stations nationwide. Biodiesel additives -- according to the people who've used them, that's why they keep going back to use this kind of diesel -- stretches mileage and therefore generate savings on fuel even if per liter it is more expensive. The mileage that's been experienced by the people who bought it is more.

I encourage diesel-using vehicle owners to try these blends. Of course, it's hard for us to expect that overnight those who do their own refining like Petron, shell would pre-blend the diesel, the biodiesel. But what they're willing to do is to carry -- remember all these gasoline stations they have their supermarket types of services -- what they're willing to do is to carry the blend in bottles so that the individual gasoline consumer will buy the bottle and blend it himself. In other words, for every 100 liters of gasoline -- ah, diesel, 'no. Diesel -- the recommendation is to put one liter of the biodiesel blend to go a longer way.

In September... No, not in September. On August 29 some gasoline stations will start selling ethanol-blend fuels. So we hope to be there on August 29 for the launching of the ethanol fuel. This is first to use imported ethanol. But even at that the imported ethanol is cheaper than the imported gasoline. And soon we will be starting up the construction of domestic ethanol production facilities. And that is going to be our real future in energy conservation.

The compressed natural gas station will be arriving about the third week of September, and by December of this year, we hope to have 200 buses running on compressed natural gas from Malampaya.

The other one that is a very big savings is the LPG substitute for regular gasoline. Many taxis are already using this. But the big gasoline stations are also willing to carry this like Petron gasoline stations. The important thing though is that the vehicle itself must have a convertion kit from gasoline to LPG, but then it will end up cheaper.

I call on Congress... I have called on Congress to pass new legislation to decrease our reliance on oil and increase our reliance on indigenous and renewable energy. And I'm very happy that they consider it a big priority.

I thank the local government units -- they're not here today but I've been meeting with them -- that have begun to saddle up for the long ride. This crisis will bring out the best and the worst of leaders. We shall see who are the champions of the people and we shall see who are the servants only of themselves.

Total focus on energy conservation is needed, away from the arena of destructive politics. Although my detractors want to pull me away from my prime responsibility, and force greater suffering among the people.

I'm instructing the national security adviser to come up with a phased threat assessment ranging from low to worst case scenarios, with the corresponding action plans involving community back up.

The watch on terrorism which tends to take advantage of situations like this will be sustained with vigor, while syndicated criminal groups will be kept at bay with the support of vigilant communities. I'm instructing the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Committee to put up a task force against heinous crimes to be headed by the secretary of interior and local government, Angie Reyes.

Ladies and gentlemen of the national agencies, GOCCs and state universities and colleges, I called you here so that Popo could inform you officially and personally by his presentation of the new memorandum circular directing the entire government to implement energy efficiency and conservation measures. And we expect strict compliance, that's why you're all here.

We must set the example and take the lead. The government being the biggest entity in our country, the biggest employer with two million employees can certainly take the lead.

I'm instructing Secretary Lotilla to assist me in following through on the strict government measures that must be taken. This means... You know, in carrying out the goals that were set out in the circular, some concrete manifestations of this would be that the public must see less of convoys of gas guzzlers careening in traffic with their sirens blaring and calling attention to official profligacy. As president, I've even asked my own security people, "how do we reduce our gas guzzling convoy?" Well, they said I do need two heavy-duty bulletproof cars. But the rest of my convoy shall be diesel-fueled.

The public must also see less of government vehicles on the streets during weekends and less of these government vehicles even bringing kids to school. Sabi nga ni Noli pati sa pamamalengke. The other night, I had a dinner with some businessmen. Oh, yeah the fire brigades, Chinese businessmen, and one of them was telling me that he went somewhere and he saw a government vehicle with the driver inside -- the owner was already in the building having a meeting whatever it was -- and the air condition on. So he called the attention of the driver. That's a good citizen. But on the other hand, it means that we really have to inculcate energy conservation habits in our own bureaucracy.

Gas rationing is a possibility in a worst case scenario where a severe shortage could force allocations to serve prime security, social and economic imperatives, but even now we must have it in the government agencies, in the GOCCs, and in the state universities and colleges. I hope to do a spot check one of these days with Popo on gas rationing within a government entity.

I'm also instructing Secretary Lotilla to consult with the private sector -- I already opened the possibility yesterday in the exporters congress -- and now with you, the public sector, on reviving the 4-day work week for the bureaucracy. It's gonna be very important for Pat Sto. Tomas to participate in this consultation because, of course, the ones who will do this will be the bureaucracy .

In other words, we shall deal with the energy problem with responsible governance.

And I thank you all for being here. And I thank you starting today or maybe some of you have already started earlier, let us go with the E.C. way of life -- the Energy Conservation way of life.

Maraming salamat at mabuhay!

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