The Truth About Unsolicited Proposals

How's your electricity bill these days? Still high? Ever felt the need to see that bill low? Properly managed? I'm sure you do. Well, I've stumbled across something that may interest you since we're all consumers.

National Coordinator for Kuryente.org Nic Satur Jr. says "The unsolicited proposal will hinder competition, and provide corruption, bring misinformation in the bidding process. This was created for consumers to get the lowest cost. We'll now have a bidding under the mercy of power producers, remember, our bill has almost half of its cost from generation. The existing process makes it allow everyone to bid, and the unsolicited proposal can be done with terms for reference which will be made by the power producer themselves. Unsolicited Proposal is currently used in other projects, and to bring more players and technologies, they wanted to push for this. It is legal, but not needed, it will bring us back to a time where they get non-negotiated deals. If I am the power producer, I will just fix terms and challenge it with the price I want to win and disqualify other power producers. We're not saying this will lead to corruption, but if not done right, it will. At present, the Philippines is not ready for it, nor does it need it. The House Resolution 1874 should be discussed, to create implementing rules and regulation as its present form is very prone to sweetheart deals that would be detrimental to the consumer. The Filipino consumer will suffer."

Kuryente.org was created for energy consumer welfare and Amin or Anak Mindanao Partylist just issued a joint statement together with stakeholders, consumers and media entities aware of this:

 

Amihilda Sangcopan says "I join you today not just as a legislator but a member of electric power consumers. Amin has filed House Resolution 1874 to conduct investigation into DOE, to reconsider to amend its policy on competitive selection process in the power supply, entertaining unsolicited proposals that will breed unfair competition. It will hinder access to affordable electricity guaranteed by our constitution Article 12."

Ricky Juab, Mindanao based consumer adds "The situation of Misamis Oriental is really hard especially for electric cooperatives even now during the pandemic. We consumers wish that every policy that the government does, our side would be heard. We are suffering in Misamis Oriental, where our cooperative has failed to give supply electricity and we experience blackouts, most of which are fluctuating, breaking most of our household appliances... everyday we have been experiencing it, until now. Even informed, we still are experiencing power outages, but still getting the same bill. We sometimes get double, this happens with other consumers in Mindanao. DOE wants Unsolicited Proposal, which will disable most of our safeguards. It is prone to corruption, to follow their terms and conditions. Prices will get worse, so we consumers implore DOE to stop it. This is inhumane and improper."

Parent Mel Salda gave her thoughts and say "The pandemic pushed us all to work remotely. Working as a Virtual Assistant, it has increased our energy consumption, increased cost of living. DOE should ease our burden instead of adding to it. Unsolicited Proposal is going to get us to pay for an even higher price for electricity in Asia. This would be a burden to single parents like me."

It's good that they are doing this very early and not just reacting to it when it gets implemented. Just like them, I'd like to see relief for the Filipino people. If you want to know more about the energy sector and consumer protection, you may visit Kuryente.org who's part of the movement.

BEKO Initiatives for Climate Change

In a product showcase done this evening, European brand BEKO told us how it is possible to use recycled materials, bio composites and detergent saving technologies on appliances. It is their company's contribution in order to rid of climate crisis, something we all can start at home.

Present during the occasion was Arcelik's CEO Hakan Bulgurlu and their CMO Zeynep Yalim Uzun. They also had their CCo Ragip Balcioglu discuss how it became their mission to do sustainability efforts in manufacturing their line of products in order to have a positive impact on the world we live in.

Arcelik's CEO Hakan Bulgurlu says "COVID has changed our lives in the past two years, but with science, we have been able to see the end of the tunnel. We have been doing a lot of work with our product range. By coming together, we are defeating COVID by science. The climate crisis also is a concern, so with this, we are also addressing it with science as well. The climate crisis is man made, we can overcome this too. We have reduced emissions, but we have to do more. Unless we do the necessary, we are not going to be in the right track. Respecting the world, respecting worldwide is our slogan. We want to reduce emissions by 30%. Products that consumers buy as it goes into homes also are included. Today, Arcelik will work tirelessly and stretch our goals over the coming months. Hopefully we can do this in all our value chain. We commit to have fuel, plastic, waste, water, become reduced as part of our goals. The green wave is coming, it's here and here to stay. It makes good business sense that you can do the right thing without costing much. We are doing this because we believe it brings us an opportunity for our business to create a new brand, especially when you want to be different compared to your competitors. I believe when we do this, we'll get ahead. It makes business sustainable. Appliances should use less energy, and be built with quality recycled materials. We have products that reflect this principle. We will apply this across the board including packaging, in almost all areas of our business, it's a long journey but we have to lead by example. We need to continue, so others will follow, so we can fight this challenge in climate crisis. The urgency is real, we need to act together. Every decision we make, this will be in our attention."

Brendan Edgerton the Director of World Business Council for Sustainable Development adds "Everything is connected, COVID is seen as a restart for all of us."

Ragip Balcioglu the CCO of Arcelik says "Regardless of how business starts, there is one thing consumers want. They want CHANGE. Everyone changed shopping habits during the pandemic. Arcelik has always been doing sustainability efforts for a number of years now. We are a leader in our industry, working with a vision to an entire ecosystem."

Zeynep Yalim Uzun the CMO of Arcelik says "We are aligned with our consumers sustainability goals. We have been developing products that make healthy living possible. We are commited in recycling, have energy efficient products that support sustainable living. This is what the consumer wants. It's great to see we are in the same page as this. Working towards a healthier planet, we need technologies that  lower carbon footprint. It's a great push for us, but we encourage other manufacturers to follow suit as well. We utilize AI, did videos that reached millions of people so more people can join our journey."

From washing machines, dryers, these things can use recyclable materials in order to create these appliances. They also do fishnets on plastic parts, including industrial threads waste and integrate it to plastic parts in the last two years. The company also use environmentally friendly materials in their Bio Cycle Refrigerators. They use bio plastics, with egg trays made from soybean oil, egg shells and other materials.

They have several campaigns that address obesity in the past like "Eat Like a Pro", and now evolved it to something that is more shifted to the attention to the community, and the world. They do "Healthy Living on a Healthy Planet". And I think that's a good thing to address.

KATHNIEL Stars on Acer's Holiday Video

Trusted by a lot of people, Kathryn Bernardo and Daniel Padilla is still at it this holiday season as they become the official ambassadors for ACER and NITRO under Acer Philippines. This comes as great news for all KathNiel fans especially those who are in the lookout for new laptop computers these holidays. The video they appeared in is called FINDING JOY, a perfect theme for those who have lost hope, and still fighting to survive during this pandemic. These machines are all powered by Windows 10 and 11th Gen Intel® Core™ Processors which Daniel finds good for Nitro engines and gaming, plus Kathryn's everyday tasks in social media or business related ventures. The song they used in this video also sparks strength to Filipinos who under these circumstances chose to still work or continue education for their families, while threats are out there from COVID 19. To get you in the mood for the holidays, I got you the post of Kathryn and Daniel here. So please, enjoy!

Kathniel on #Acer Philippines 💙 Another great achievement, have more and more blessings to come!💋🥂🎉🎉🎉

Posted by Kathryn Bernardo on Friday, December 18, 2020

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A post shared by DP (@supremo_dp)

This song was sung by Daniel, Janina Vela, Cong Velasquez and Awi Columna. It was composed and written by Mart Sam Olivades, Felichi Salva Cruz and Penelope Ann Medrano. Also in the video are cameo appearances by Ivana Alawi, Alodia and Ashley Gosiengfiao, COLN Band, Junnieboy and Vien, KuyaNic and Luponwxc, TNC Pro Team DOTA 2, ArkAangel Predator PUBG, Een Mercado, Kang Dupet, Armel Tabios, Kim “Gabbi” Santos, Tims Radrup, Damien “Kpii” Chok, Marlon Marcelo, Kuku Palad and Reg Rubio who are pretty big names on YouTube and Facebook for gaming.

 ACER has pretty good consumer and gaming laptops, maybe if you fancy one, KahNiel can convince you to get one today! Happy holidays ACER!