Speaker Lord Allan Velasco on Sunday welcomed the decision of Manila Electric Co. to extend its no-disconnection policy for the non-payment of electric bills until Jan. 31 next year.
“The extended grace period being given to our fellow Filipinos during the holiday season will provide much needed reprieve to those reeling from the devastating effects of the pandemic and natural calamities,” Velasco said.
“This good gesture on the part of Meralco will go a long way in helping our kababayans feel secure this Christmas.”
Velasco wrote to Meralco president Ray Espinosa requesting him to extend the no-disconnection policy for the entire Christmas season until the end of January 2021.
To extend the no-disconnection period would help ease the burden of Meralco customers grappling with the challenges posed by the pandemic, he said.
“We appreciate that Meralco had extended the same courtesy during the height of the nationwide lockdown, and we expect that the company will be as considerate this yuletide season,” Velasco’s Nov. 30 letter read.
In his Dec. 14 response, Espinosa told Velasco that after “careful evaluation and in consideration” of his request, Meralco would extend its no-disconnection policy for the non-payment of bills from Dec. 31, 2020 to Jan. 31, 2021.
He said the extended grace period would benefit more than three million Meralco customers consuming 200 kilowatts per hour and below during the billing month of December 2020.
The number represents around 47 percent of Meralco’s total customer base, he says.
Velasco thanked Espinosa for “showing a true bayanihan spirit and empathizing with the plight of our indigent countrymen.”