IT is expensive to be poor in the Philippines.

While traveling in rural areas, I discovered electricity is more expensive than in Metro Manila. According to PIDS data, the poverty incidence in Metro Manila is only 3.2 percent, compared to 10.2 percent in Calabarzon, 29.3 percent in Bicol, 27.6 percent in Eastern Visayas, 30.1 percent in Zamboanga Peninsula, 26.1 percent in Northern Mindanao, and one of the highest in BARMM, at 37.2 percent. Yet, data also shows that Metro Manila has one of the lowest electricity costs compared to the poorest Filipinos in these regions.