BALANGA CITY – Sen. Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. on Friday expressed his full support to the activation of the mothballed Bataan Nuclear Power Plant in Morong town.
“I am for the operation of BNPP. Ito ang pinakamagandang dapat gawin dahil malaki ang pangangailangan ng bansa sa power supply. Siguro kapag pinaandar ito na may 650 MGW output, maaayos na ang problema ng power sa Luzon,” the senator said.
The young Marcos said BNPP was constructed as a nuclear power plant and he does not know if it can be converted into a coal-fired plant. “Hindi ako engineer pero may ilang engineer akong nakausap na nagsasabing iba ang nuclear plant sa coal-fired power plant. Halos gigibain daw ang nuclear power plant para mai-convert sa coal,” he said.
“Experts I have spoken to were one in saying that it will be better to construct a new plant for coal-fired dahil maraming babaguhin sa nuclear power plant,” the senator added. The BNPP was a project in the 70s of the senator’s father, the late strongman Pres. Ferdinand Marcos but was, however, mothballed by his revolutionary successor then Pres. Corazon Aquino in 1986.
Bataan Gov. Albert Raymond Garcia when asked on his opinion about BNPP said that he is for development, for more employment opportunities for his constituents but not at the price of safety.
“Gusto natin mawala muna ang agam-agam with regards to safety. Many controversies surround BNPP. Dapat mawala muna ang doubts, fear at maging maliwanag ang safety issue,” the governor said.
Garcia said that if it had operated before, it might have been alright. “Pero mahigit 30 years old na ito at hindi na bago kaya dapat pag-aralang mabuti,” he said. The governor and his brother, Balanga City Mayor Jose Enrique Garcia III led municipal and provincial officials in welcoming Marcos in Bataan.
The young Marcos as chair of the Senate Committee on Infrastructure conducted a dialogue with local government
units led by municipal mayors and provincial and barangay officials and representatives of non-governmental organizations.
The senator said he will be doing the consultation throughout the country to know of the infrastructure development plan in every area. “I am here not to tell you of your infrastructure requirements but to ask you of your plan,” he said.
