MANILA — Senator Bam Aquino questioned energy and social welfare officials on the government’s lifeline subsidy program and its funding mechanism during the PROTECT hearing, raising concerns over targeting and coverage of low-income households.

Aquino sought clarification from the Department of Energy (DOE) on whether rising fuel prices could trigger electricity shortages or brownouts.

“Usec Sales. On the first hearing, tinanong ko po kung itong pagtaas ng presyo ng diesel at gasolina will this yield to a electricity shortage? Will it? Magdudulot po ba ito ng brownout? Gusto ko lang pong klaruhin kasi in the first hearing, sabi niyo it will not, ‘no? It will not yield to brownouts. So gusto ko pong malaman,” Aquino said.

Energy Undersecretary Alessandro Sales responded that fuel price increases would not directly cause power interruptions.

“Yes, wala pong magiging brownout due to fuel shortage. But of course, you know, when you look at it seasonally, pag tag-araw may mga plantang nasisira. So hindi yan, hindi dahil sa magkaka-shortage,” Sales said.

Aquino pressed further, linking earlier discussions on global conflicts and fuel prices to possible supply issues.

“Hindi dahil sa Strait of Hormuz, hindi dahil sa Iran-America war, hindi dahil sa pagtaas ng presyo ng diesel at gasolina, pagbaba. The shortages are because of possible plant outages. Correct?” he asked.

“Yes, sir,” Sales replied.

Aquino also questioned proposals related to scheduled rotating outages or energy-saving measures.

“Nagmungkahi kayo na mag-one hour a week, magpatay ng kuryente, ‘no?” he said.

Sales clarified that the proposal was aimed at energy conservation.

“Yes, sir. Well, it’s also savings and in pushing for energy efficiency and making it more, nasa kaisipan ba ng tao yung pagtitipid. Maging conscious sila sa pagtitipid,” he said.

Aquino then shifted to the government’s lifeline subsidy program, emphasizing the need to review its targeting system and funding source.

He said he had filed a resolution to reassess the program, noting that eligibility is based on electricity consumption.

“Kasi again, the targeting here is based on consumption. Kung maganda ho talaga yung targeting ng DSWD, eh baka meron mga listahan na mas maayos na pwedeng magamit,” Aquino said.

Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Secretary Rex Gatchalian said the current lifeline program covers around 135,000 households, mostly under the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps).

“Sa to date, only a hundred thirty-five thousand households ang nasa loob ng programa na ‘to… The total peso value niyan is at around 8.08 million pesos. That’s the total peso outlay for them,” Gatchalian said.

Aquino noted the amount translates to less than PHP100 million annually.

Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) Chairman Atty. Francis Saturnino Juan confirmed the funding structure of the program, saying it is supported through a charge imposed on other electricity consumers.

“To be able to fund the program, an imposition right now of one centavo, point zero one per kilowatt hour is being levied on all consumers…” Juan said.

Aquino clarified that the levy applies to consumers above certain consumption thresholds.

Juan explained that eligibility for the lifeline program is based on consumption and qualification under 4Ps or validation as marginalized consumers, while senior citizens receive a separate electricity discount program.

Aquino questioned the limited coverage of the subsidy, noting that only 4Ps beneficiaries currently benefit from the lifeline support.

“Yung cutoff kasi natin plus the 4Ps, again, they represent the bottom 30% of the country. Yung next 20% at yung sunod na 20% or 30%, lahat yan nangangailangan, ‘no?” Aquino said.

He added that he filed a resolution to review the program’s design and explore possible alternative funding or expanded coverage for more low-income consumers.

“Ba’t ‘to nasasama pa sa kuryente natin? So, I filed a resolution, we can look into it… And I hope we can, we can ask for your support to try to understand this better,” Aquino said.

Officials from the DOE, DSWD, and ERC expressed openness to further discussions on the proposal.