The Alliance of Concerned Consumers in Electricity and Social Services, or ACCESS, will be launched in Bacolod City on October 15, together with the induction of its officers for 2024-2025, spearheaded by Power Watch Secretary-General Wennie Sancho.
ACCESS is a united effort of consumer action groups, multi-sectoral organizations, and individual consumer advocates whose common interest is the strengthening and upholding of the rights and responsibilities of the Filipino consumers, particularly the poor and the marginalized. As an NGO, it will be regional in scope, multi-sectoral in membership, non-sectarian in character, autonomous from the government and independent of partisan politics.
According to a press release, the alliance is committed to address the basic problems of the consumers, namely food security and safety, basic services, and public utilities, including but not limited to water supply services, power distribution utilities (DU) and transportation. The main advocacy of ACCESS is consumer protection and empowerment.
One of the policy directions that guides ACCESS is the concept of democratic participation. The consumers and the management of Negros Power should be involved in an empowered consultation on vital issues and concerns in the spirit of partnership. The consumers must have the power to meaningfully influence the decision affecting their rights and welfare. ACCESS will establish a Consumer Information Network (CIN) which will be responsible in developing popularly circulated and self-sustaining information materials to update the consumers on matters affecting them.
As of now there are 12 organizations joining ACCESS with 6 individual consumer advocates. The highlight of the program will be the signing of the Consumers Covenant by all participants of the “1st ACCESS General Assembly on Consumers Protection.”
The venue of the assembly will be in the Orange Room, 3rd Floor, Lopues East Main Bldg., Burgos Extension, Bacolod City.*