Letters to the Editor
Letters to the
editor are welcome on this page. Only those with complete name,
signature, contact number and return address for verification
shall be considered for publication, subject to editing and space
limitation when necessary - Editor-in-Chief.
Count me in
Hi! Good afternoon. I just recently opened your website. And this
is my first time to see it. I would just like to send my
appreciation for your wonderful newslayout.
I work at the Albay Capitol as Officer-in-Charge of the Provincial
Information Office. I intend to send articles to you through the
website.
We write articles about Albay. And what I would like to ask is
whether you would also allow us to send articles to your
newspaper.
I understand that Mr. Flor Narito is your correspondent but he’s
working independently in gathering his news that he wrote about.
Never does he pick up news releases from our office for print to
local newspapers here. Most of our articles are published in our
own local newspapers here in Albay but perhaps, it would be more
useful if they are read also in your province.
Truthfully, we always receive a copy of Bicol Mail through Mr.
Narito who always reserve a copy for us to read. And in fact, I
find them completely sufficient. Each page is filled with
interesting informative materials.
Luckily, I was able to browse it from the internet altho
accidentally.
And I consider it very fortunate.
With this, I say Kudos and rest assured that I always find time to
surf your newspaper from our computer.
Goodbye. Looking forward to your favorable reply.
Thank you.
JOSE M. BRIONES
jbriones@albay.gov.ph
Energy conservation
As if the political imbroglio that almost brought the present
leadership down to its knees is not critical enough, here comes
another recurring yet unresolved problem – the energy crisis.
With the world’s crude oil price rising sharply and our country
ever dependent on foreign oil, we can ill-afford to do nothing
positive, if drastic. By all means, we need to cut down on fuel or
energy consumption cost, some common sense on our part which could
or should have been put to use even without any impending energy
exigency.
And any measure to help conserve or efficiently use energy,
whether or not they adversely affect our lifestyles, would do well
to start from the top hierarchy down to the ordinary household.
Apart from probably exploring and utilizing other less expensive
alternative energy resources such as the sun, water and wind (for
“lack of funds” or political will), we may for the meantime do or
don’t do a few things as indicated below:
1) Walk and go car-less. Let’s give up, if we can, our penchant
for sporting gas-guzzling vehicles, particularly those marked “For
Official (Ab)Use Only,” and walk. Or, saddle a horse. Or mount a
carabao. Or, go pedal a bicycle or padyak.
2) Lights and air-conditioning off. Some government or school
offices where official time is almost identical to lunch break,
siesta, leave, junket or truancy, should help conserve energy by
shutting off their lights and cooling fixtures. On the other hand,
public school classrooms have to be better lighted and air-cooled
if only to enhance the learning process and help upgrade the
quality of education, presumably more effectively than subjecting
the teachers’ allowances to some kind of delaying ritual or
“painful reform.”
3) Strictly no personal use of public energy. Strict measures have
to be in place to ensure that nobody, be he a bigwig or not, will
have his own farm equipment or private vehicle repaired or welded
right in the school or public grounds using Juan de la Cruz-paid
electricity.
4) Limit TV viewing time. After all, more often than not, we end
up only getting hooked to or vexed with cheap antics and
kilometric commercials. In real life, haven’t we had enough of
those from political clowns and bums?
Of course, there are a lot more ways by which we can help conserve
energy and hopefully save our ailing economy and bedeviled country
from possible tragedy.
We only have to get our act together and work for the common (not
personal) good - and now - before things get inevitably awry.
MANUEL A. COLLAO, via e-mail.
