No, “Noggie”, no!

The Speaker of the House, Congressman Prospero Nograles along with Congressman Plaza has reportedly put forward a proposed legislation that would allow the TAX FREE importation of Hybrid cars that run on other forms of fuel such as Compressed Natural Gas (CNG), Ethanol, Electricity etc. The bill is intended to fast track the shift of Philippine motoring from fossil fuel, to alternative fuels as well as improve the air quality and the environment. That of course is the view from the eye of the ignorant.

But anyone with an ounce of suspicion would see the hand of a We-bulong cabinet secretary written all over it. There is an apparent need to jump-start and create a market for ethanol and compressed gas, which the cabinet member from the south has been lobbying, and working on even before Gloria Macapagal Arroyo became President.

The intention of the bill may be good but it is certainly lacking in research, reality and a sense or order of priority. While I admire Speaker Nograles for his unchanging character as a friend and as a humble leader, I have to cut up his proposed bill for many reasons.

Beginning from a sense of priority, what our nation urgently needs is to develop alternative fuel and power generation resources. We need lower electricity costs not just for ordinary consumers but to revive and develop our manufacturing chain. Consumers are buying less and less products that require electricity because of their electric bills.

Since consumers are buying less and less products, stores like SM and Abenson no longer stock such products in bulk and merely order when you pay and agree to have it delivered. What may have impressed you, as “good service” was a cost cutting measure as well as “product movement based on actual sales”.

As a result the makers and manufacturers have drastically cut down their production, which explains why many of your friends or relatives have lost their jobs at the plant or at the sales centers. This vicious cycle repeats itself in many other areas such as garments exports, furniture, even in the food and tourism industry where lights, air-conditioning, and food handling and storage is largely dependent on electricity. Even private schools have been hit by the cost of electricity so the bill is passed on to parents.

If vehicles were the focus of Speaker Nograles and Congressman Plaza perhaps the tax-free incentive should not be for the very few and the very rich who can afford Hybrid vehicles. Instead Sir “Noggie” could do us all a favor by arranging the tax free importation of LPG conversion kits so more people can alternate between gasoline and LPG. We pay half the price and help improve air quality.

Even in the time when Heherson Sonny Alvarez was Secretary of the DENR, I already suggested that they import brand new engines, which motorists can buy on a discount by trading in their dilapidated engines. It was no different from the western idea of trading in your own toilet bowl for the latest in technology, which resulted in millions of gallons of water being saved. Sonny Alvarez tried too late in the game and no one believed this day would come.

If possible, allow the importation of brand new LPG type vehicles or Hybrid engines and use this to replace old ones. Why buy the car when all you need is the engine. We have the best mechanics and “Lateros” in the world. As a friend said: we have the ability to turn a coral reef into a car or resurrect Lazarus’ chariot.

The Speaker can also study removing the taxes and duties on resins and fibers used in fiberglass and many types of products manufactured in the country and exported abroad. By making resins and fiberglass cheaper, we can mass-produce lighter body panels for different type of vehicles which in turn results in lighter vehicles. In case you didn’t know, this technology is used to give the formula cars the ability to run faster but use up less gas. We create more jobs just by fixing and improving instead of keep on buying new cars.

The lifting on taxes and duties would also help develop fiberglass water crafts and fishing boats instead of cutting down trees and using plywood for the impractical bancas. Imagine the fact that Nigeria and Sri Lanka already have such boat building industries based on resins and fiberglass.

I wonder what would happen if we got the DOST to put together an imported used car from Port Irene, replaced all body panels with carbon fiber made by Atoy body kits, installed Motolite batteries, locally made Goodyear tires, and an LPG system. If we were to compute the benefits generated for business and employment, would a tax-free Hybrid be equal or better? If we ran the cars head to head, would the cost versus efficiency be justifiable? Finally, what would be the price difference?

Mr. Speaker,

I humbly suggest that you first inquire from us your true constituents who have long known of the benefits of Solar powered alternative energy but have not been able to establish such because many in government have treated the importation of these things as a business or a luxury. In many areas of the world freezers and food coolers are run on Solar powered systems. In Holland most houses use LPG powered water heater. In Japan, LPG is used for washing machines and driers.

Ask us about modern windmill technologies for agricultural applications, which would quickly develop stagnant ponds, erratic irrigation systems, and inactive farms into food belts while generating a respectable amount of electricity for a farm or a compound but we can’t import because the government taxes the hell out of them.

At a time when the infrastructure and the understanding of Hybrid vehicles is in its embryonic stage, the proposed bill if passed will simply emphasize the gap between the elite rich and the larger population who have long asked for representation and legislation that will empower them in their choices and the way they make a living and live a life.

Mr. Speaker, Vision is indeed necessary in leadership, but it must be a vision that can be reached, not only by a few but by all.