ARMM celebrates ‘Night of Power’ with AMORE lights

The call for simultaneous switching on of lights was made on an AMORE-co-hosted radio program on the government station DXMR Radyo ng Bayan 1070 khz in Zamboanga City and DXMS-Cotabato.

Close to 5,000 households in about 180 remote villages in the ARMM jointly observed one of the holiest nights on the Muslim calendar, Lailatul Qadr or literally, “Night of Power,” last October 20 by simultaneously switching on their lights, powered by renewable energy from Alliance for Mindanao Off-grid Renewable Energy (AMORE) Program.

Lailatul Qadr, which in the Islam religion commemorates the first descent of an angel to the prophet Muhammad to give him the Divine Knowledge that is recorded in the Quran. It is observed any day within the last 10 days of Ramadan, the Muslims’ holy month of fasting and penitence. The Muslims consider it their holiest night, on which the reward of prayer is greater than that of prayers offered for a whole lifetime. Muslims believe that at sunset of this day, angels will descend from heaven to bestow enlightenment and blessings on them. To guide the angels in their descent, they turn on all their household lights at dusk. The event, dubbed the First Mindanao Light Festival, dramatically showcased the growing commitment to peace and unity among the Muslims with AMORE’s continuing electrification of the region, the least electrified in the country.

This simultaneous switching on of lights highlighted the ARMM’s growing equity with other regions in terms of electrification. The least electrified region in the country, more and more ARMM villages especially in areas that are too far to be connected to the power grid are now being energized with stand-alone solar and microhydro power systems under the Alliance for Mindanao Off-grid Renewable Energy (AMORE) Program.

“This is why we are calling this event the Light Festival. On that night, our communities celebrated all together the coming of light. And just as they believe that on this night, they will receive blessings when the light comes on, the onset of electricity in their village has rekindled their hopes for development. More than rekindling their hopes, however, electricity has lit up their passion for self-help and self-determination,” says AMORE chief and former undersecretary Tetchi Cruz-Capellan.

For the first time ever, ARMM Governor Zaldy Ampatuan has issued a Memorandum enjoining all local government units in the region to lead the simultaneous switching on of lights in their respective areas. He also spearheaded the switch-on from his residence in Shariff Aguak, Maguindanao, which was followed by a live broadcast of the observance in the AMORE-electrified barangay of Sepaka in Datu Paglas, also in Maguindanao. “We must cherish the project as something Allah gave for us to have light in our homes, for only those with evil intentions and those who do not obey the teachings of Islam, which literally means peace, want to live in darkness,” said Governor Datu Andal Ampatuan of Maguindanao, one of the ARMM provinces. US Ambassador Kristie Kenney greeted the Muslims on radio, saying, “I hope… that the light we bring will not only light homes but bring the light of peace and prosperity for all of the beautiful people in Mindanao.”