MORONG, Bataan– Responding to President Marcos’s statement that the people care about cheap energy more than anything else, the NFBM countered: “There will be no talk of cheap energy when the safety and future of our communities are at stake.” The group stressed that cheap electricity is not possible if the safety of people and the environment is at stake.

According to the NFBM, the danger posed by nuclear power plants never disappears. The group cited the 2011 Fukushima Daiichi incident, where Japan—despite its high level of knowledge and technology—failed to prevent the meltdown of the plant.

“This should serve as a living reminder to countries like the Philippines that aim to build and operate nuclear power plants. The risk of nuclear energy cannot be offset by any benefit it promises,” the NFBM stated.

The group further argued that the BNPP was mothballed precisely because it was substandard and plagued by defects traceable to corruption under the watch of President Marcos’s father. “Now, the push to rehabilitate the BNPP is a clear step toward correcting the Marcoses’ historical narrative—an attempt to whitewash the past and rebuild the family’s tarnished legacy,” Julito Velasco, Vice Chairperson of the NFBM and a resident of Morong said.

“If the BNPP rehabilitation is Marcos’s legacy, then it is a legacy built on the risks and fears of the people of Bataan. We refuse to be a sacrificed zone. We say NO to the rehabilitation of the BNPP!”, Velasco, added.

The NFBM also questioned the economic logic behind the nuclear push: “If this government is serious about addressing the high cost and the stable supply of energy, why build nuclear plants when they are too costly and take a longer time to build compared to safer, renewable energy? Moreover, nuclear waste management and decommissioning remain impossible challenges even for other nuclear-powered countries.”

The group also stressed that the Philippines has numerous sources of alternative energy that are more appropriate for our archipelagic condition of about 2,000 inhabited islands. These alternatives would be of lower cost and can be managed by existing technical expertise. “The target of 2,400 MW by 2035 can be reached through a good alternative energy program,” the NFBM noted.

Meanwhile, the NFBM staged a protest at the gate of the BNPP in Morong town to welcome the participants of the Supply Chain Forum previously organized by the DOE in Manila. The protesters carried placards bearing the slogans “No to Rehabilitation of BNPP!” and “Nuclear is Unsafe, Not Clean, and Expensive!”

The group called on President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. and the government to prioritize the safety and welfare of the communities and the protection of the environment in choosing energy projects, stressing that this is the mandate that every public servant should consider at all times. (Nuclear / Coal Free Bataan Movement Press Statement)