Photo credit: Meralco Newsroom

Almost two thousand residents and business owners in the tourist town of Laiya, San Juan, Batangas are asking for a big change: they want Meralco to take over power service in their area from Batangas II Electric Cooperative (Batelec II).

The plea comes after years of unreliable electricity. Frequent outages have disrupted daily life, online classes, and businesses that rely heavily on tourism. Residents say the blackouts can last one to three hours at a time, causing financial losses and frustrating residents’ efforts to improve their quality of life.

The push for change took shape in a formal petition, signed by nearly two thousand locals. A recent Capstone Intel survey backs up their claims, showing that 93 percent of Batelec II consumers experience repeated power interruptions.

The petition lists five main concerns. First and foremost: unplanned, prolonged outages that affect work, schooling, and livelihoods. Residents also report unstable voltage, which damages essential appliances like refrigerators, fans, and TVs.

Customer service and facility maintenance are also under fire, with petitioners claiming poor response and inadequate infrastructure upgrades. They worry that Batelec II may not have the capacity to meet the growing electricity demand in Laiya, a town ready to ride a tourism boom but held back by unreliable power.

Residents emphasized community unity and the urgency of the request. “The petition is a community-driven effort, underscoring our unified demand for reliable and improved electricity service.”

The petition concludes with a hopeful note: “We believe that Meralco’s entry into our barangay will provide reliable, stable, and high-quality electricity service—critical to sustained growth, safety, and improved daily life in our community.”