(News Feature) AFP Museum in danger of losing electrical connection

From the Philippine News Agency (Feb 1): (News Feature) AFP Museum in danger of losing electrical connection

Historical treasures, currently in display at the AFP Museum in Camp Aguinaldo, Quezon City, are now in danger of being eaten by molds should plans to cut the facility's electricity proceed Wednesday.

This was after the museum racked up Php1.3 million worth of arrears in its payment of electricity starting November 2013 up to December 2015.

Originally, when the facility was established in 1996, there was a verbal agreement between military leaders then and founders of the museum that the AFP will be subsidizing the utilities.

Elizabeth Dapiton, AFP Museum administrator, said the agreement was inked during the time of AFP chief-of-staff Gen. Arturo Enrile.

"When the museum started wayback in 1996, (there) was a verbal agreement that the AFP will be subsidizing the utilities of the museum, so it went on until late in 2013, to be specific (in) November they started billing the museum for our consumption of electricity," she added.

And since the AFP Museum was created not for profit, Dapiton said they were having a hard time to raise funds to pay for their day-to-day operations.

She added that the average monthly electrical consumption of the AFP Museum was around Php40,000 to Php50,000.

Disconnection notices were served last Jan. 25, 27 and 29, with the AFP Museum being given five working days to come up with the payment.

"We really cannot pay once we pay, we only depend on the dividend income that we get from our capital endowment fund, and even when there are cash donations, those are geared for specific projects, for example we do get our regular support from Philippine Veterans Affairs Office but the funding that they give us is for a specific project," Dapiton pointed out.

And once power is cut, there is danger that molds will start growing on the various uniforms and documents stored in the museum.

She added that Php20 fee they charged for every visitor at the AFP Museum is not enough to bail them out.

And when asked why the AFP has decided to bill them in 2013, after more than 16 years of subsidizing their electrical bills, Dapiton said the military decided to consider them as "concessionaires" or "tenants".

"We’re using their place, we’re (in) their land, (and in return) we have to pay for the utilities," she added.

And since the facility is under the Armed Forces of the Philippines Museum and Historical Library Foundation, Inc, is not under the AFP plantilla and could not get operating funds from the military.

"We are (acting as) the repository of the collections of the AFP, and in a way with their displays and exhibits here we are giving them a good image to the students, we’re marketing them to the students," Dapiton disclosed.

The AFP Museum is home to pre-colonial, revolutionary and modern-day weapons, insignias, decorations and uniforms of the Filipino military. It is also host various revolutionary letters and documents.

http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=1&sid=&nid=1&rid=852880