INQUIRER FILE PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines — A resolution seeking to look into the impact of the Russia-Ukraine conflict on the country’s energy security and affordability has been filed at the Senate.
Senator Sherwin Gatchalian filed Senate Resolution No. 78, stressing that the soaring costs of global oil and coal have rippled across the domestic market as Russia is a key oil producer.
“There is a need for Congress to be apprised of the short, medium, and long-term effects and implications of the Russian invasion of Ukraine on the Philippine economy, in particular, the country’s oil supply and the effects of the continuous elevated global oil and coal prices on domestic oil and petroleum products,” Gatchalian said in a statement on Thursday.
Senator Sherwin Gatchalian. (Photo from the Senate Facebook account)
“Hindi na kakayanin ng taong bayan ang palagiang pagtaas ng presyo ng produktong petrolyo na naging sanhi din ng pagtaas ng presyo ng mga pangunahing bilihin,” added Gatchalian, the chairman of the Senate committee on energy in the 18th Congress.
(The public can no longer afford the repeated oil price increases which also causes the rise in the costs of basic commodities.)
During the previous Congress, the senator held a hearing to seek solutions and programs that could cushion the impact of the war between Russia and Ukraine.