Iloilo schools get early Holidays
Due to its distance and location, it cannot easily be reached by electricity providers, and only a few dares to visit the place.
Daily TribuneDue to its distance and location, it cannot easily be reached by electricity providers, and only a few dares to visit the place.
Students and teachers of three schools in Concepcion and Janiuay, Iloilo got an early Christmas as One Meralco Foundation continues its School Electrification Program for last mile schools.
While many Filipinos kick-off the yuletide season at the start of the "ber" months by turning on Christmas lights in their homes, malls and offices, off-grid and other far-flung communities are not able to enjoy the same due to lack of sources of electricity.
In the northern part of Iloilo, some island barangays struggle with stable access to electricity and even communications signal.
The residents rely only on some neighbors (or in some cases on the barangay) who have their own diesel generator or a small solar panel to have electricity to power up a single lamp for the night, or a tv or radio.
But because gasoline and the generator are expensive, they are forced to limit its operation to only four to five hours per night. As a result, schools in the islands are not usually prioritized by genset owners.
Farthest island school
Baliguian, an island not known to many, is a sitio of Barangay Malangabang in Concepcion, Iloilo located 40.5 kilometers, about 25.17 miles off the coast of mainland Concepcion.
It is the farthest island in Concepcion or approximately 1.5 to 2 hours away by boat from the mainland and about 2 hours away from Cadiz, Negros Occidental.
Due to its distance and location, it cannot easily be reached by electricity providers, and only a few dares to visit the place. Surrounded by open sea, travelers here meet rough waves, and the weather can be unpredictable.
As a resident of the island, Teacher Wendel John Aragon, the current school head of Baliguian Elementary School shared his first-hand experience of what it is like to live and teach in the last, farthest island of the municipality.
