ENERGY Secretary Carlos Jericho L. Petilla is interested in seeking a higher office in 2016 but has not yet made up his mind.
As of this writing, Petilla said he is seriously considering it. “I am thinking about it. I can’t stay in this position forever. Eventually, I have to go,” Petilla said in an interview ahead of a news conference scheduled on Wednesday.
The energy chief, who was appointed in 2012, is eyeing a slot in the Senate or House of Representatives. Petilla was formerly the governor of Leyte under the Liberal Party for three consecutive terms since 2004. Petilla said he has to quit his job this October, at the latest, should he decide to run. “If I am serious about it, it is difficult to still be here and make preparations. It would be unfair to use my current position. So, I can’t have two at the same time. The moment you declare, you are already a candidate,” he said.
Petilla is aware that he is not as popular as other candidates, who, among them, are from show business. Moreover, an unresolved power problem hounding the country is not going to make him a favorite candidate either.
“The question that needs to be answered here is this: Is there something I can contribute? If you feel that you can contribute more than the other candidates—and I know that’s enough for you to run—then that answers it all,” a confident Petilla declared.
The Department of Energy has faced many challenges under Petilla’s term, one of which is his recommendation to the President to seek for emergency powers to address an anticipated power crisis.
“I pushed for it. Everyone was caught off- guard and that’s why they all wanted to scrutinize me. Why did I do that? To prove that government is here to do something. They keep on saying ‘wala naman ginagawa ang gobyerno’ so now that the government is doing something…. It’s difficult to be in this position but everyone knows that I am doing something and not just sitting here and wait for my term to end,” the energy chief lamented.
Petilla is confident that he has inspired the Energy Regulatory Commission in creating a competitive and healthy environment for the private sector.
“I can never impart enough. I hope I inspired them just enough to continue what they are doing best,” he said.
In December of 2013, Petilla resigned after he failed to make good on his promise to energize the areas in Visayas that were badly hit by a tropical storm. His resignation, however, was not accepted by President Aquino.
1 comment
OMG! Ang kapa ng mukha!