Bulaga!

I was casually driving down Pasig Boulevard at the start of the New Year when to my surprise, there was a double roller guard rail at the junction going into C5. The first time I saw them was on Marcos Highway going towards Baguio City a month ago.

It was on that occasion that I learned from Baguio City Mayor Magalong that those double roller guard rails, which look like volleyballs or extra-large pinballs, were on display and trial with the DPWH. These made-in-China items were certainly colorful and designed to deflect a vehicle instead of wrapping around a vehicle in a collision.

The only problem with these double roller balls is the discovery made by Mayor Magalong regarding the price. From China to Manila, the per unit cost was $225, about P20,000. But based on a misplaced document called the DUPA or Detailed Unit Price Analysis that was “For Your Eyes Only,” the contractor price would end up at P121,330 per unit. (Pls. read Ctalk Dec.6,2024)

No wonder the DPWH needed more money than the education of Filipino children.

Speaking of “bulaga!” or surprise attacks, more and more motorists are falling victim to the unmarked, non-reflectorized, road hazards that are on EDSA and C5 used as lane dividers for bicycles. These lane dividers are approximately a foot and a half or more, made of concrete and are covered with dust or vehicle emission and are the same color as the concrete highway.

You can see them along C5 southbound after Lanuza St. or EDSA northbound just before Kalayaan avenue. Because they are not so visible and are unmarked with no warning sign, I had to check two or three times where they exactly were. Because they are below tire height of cars, drivers don’t have an idea unless they see the barriers from a distance.

Several motorists and vehicles have already been victimized by these road hazards that result in the reckless endangerment of the driving public. People have complained about this, but nothing has been done. Can the Office of the Ombudsman please consider investigating the matter, since it leads to damage to property and unjust prosecution of innocent drivers?

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During holiday gatherings, a number of individuals from the business sector expressed concerns that the country might experience power shortages in 2025 because there are no significant projects to put up new power plants.

That, of course, is dependent on more investors coming in, the economy heating up and manufacturing for exports coming online. That sort of three-pointer happening is less likely than one at the 0.01 second of a UAAP championship. It won’t happen because Filipino politicians invest in themselves and their pockets and not on the investment and production environment.

So, chances are, Filipinos, whether investors or “survivors” such as farmers, mom&pop companies in tourism, etc., will all have to rely on themselves for power when the lights go out. I have long been an advocate of solar power, and I recently learned from a Cabinet secretary that all solar power initiatives have been centralized under the Department of Energy (DOE). Other departments or agencies can’t touch it without permission from DOE.

Unfortunately, the DOE prioritizes big ticket projects and is not inclined to develop independent residential, farm or small commercial solar power development for various reasons. Any solar farm development on the ground or coming soon are all pre-designed to connect or produce power for existing grids or cooperatives.

The cruel act of government and Congress is that they require millions of consumers to collectively pay millions of pesos for FIT or subsidy to renewable energy projects or solar farms. Here is where you are kicked in the groin: how many such projects have been flipped or sold by proponents to power companies or corporations for a huge profit?

They used millions of pesos taxed from Filipino consumers, made a profit selling their “pioneering” project and we got nothing in return. That, folks, is Legislated Profiteering. Even foreigners laugh at us because for a country with so much sun and solar power potential, we have nothing compared to cloudy Europe or Japan.

Another irony is the fact that banks in the Philippines give loans or installment plans for cars, motorcycles, appliance and the like but when it comes to solar power installations, only BPI offers “personal loans” applicable to solar. So once again, Filipinos must be self-reliant to prevent going to the “dark side” during power shortages.

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Last but not least, several mobile phone plan holders – a.k.a those locked-in with local mobile companies under an installment plan – are complaining about the lock-in policy of mobile companies that prevent them from using SIM cards in countries they travel to even if the phone they have is dual-SIM.

While Philippine telcos have good connectivity, they can’t compete with local companies in Japan, Korea, US and EU. Even more crucial is that students, business people, etc. who are on an extended visit end up relying on the internet, Meta or Messenger instead of having full use of their phone which they continue to pay for.

They also complain about not being able to take advantage of the dual-SIM by having two SIM cards of the two competing telcos within the Philippines. This stems from the public’s experience where one telco has strong signal coverage in certain areas and poor signal in others.

I can appreciate how awkward if not insane it feels to use two different phones when you have a pricey new dual-SIM phone. Such restrictions have weighed down customer loyalty and both Smart and Globe should study this in terms of long term consumer relations.

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