Lebanon: Streetlights still on in the daytime?

Hello, Lebanon. It’s me, your friendly Green Patriot. Have any of you driven on the highways, or looked out your window, and noticed that our streetlights are on in the daytime? To add insult to injury, they are often off at night! This is a waste of our electricity, our tax money, and our natural resources. What use do we have for them in the daytime?

Nor is this a new issue. Indeed, MTV broadcast this issue a few months ago. I decided to follow up on this. I first called Electricite du Liban, and they told me that this is an issue to be dealt with by the municipality. I called up my municipality multiple times, and it was month before they even picked up the phone. When I complained (twice), they did nothing. The highways is a different matter, and after calling several different public offices, I was told to complain to Mohafezet Beirut. I did so, and nothing happened.

My fellow Lebanese, our government is unresponsive to the fact that our electricity and taxpayer money are going to waste. They say that they are going to bring us more electricity and that we are going to enjoy the fruits of this oil endeavor when they cannot respond to basic common sense? All it takes is switching a time dial!  Tell me, do you like driving on dark streets? Do you like paying for something inefficient? Do you like knowing that your environment is being degraded due to government inefficiency and laziness? What does switching a time dial take?!

My fellow Lebanese, it is time for us to exert more pressure in order for this problem to stop. Every day, our taxpayer money and our resources are being wasted. Let us put a stop to it! We can do so by increasing media pressure and increasing the amount of complaints towards our respective municipalities. We can do it, Lebanon!

Streetlights on in the daytime?

Lebanon has come a long way since the end of the civil war; when it ended, we had no streetlights at all, and this was by far and away the least of our problems.

We have streetlights now, however. There is only one problem with them, though; they are being used in the daytime, when drivers and pedestrians alike can see without them! I have noticed this in more than one municipality; Antelias-Naccache, different parts of Beirut, even in the Chouf.

As a people, we the Lebanese have to rely on generator use 16 hours a day. I know this for a fact, as I called Electricite du Liban and asked. Yet we are squandering our electricity resources in this fashion, our money, and hurting the environment!  

The timing of streetlights is an issue dealt with by local municipalities. If you live in an area where this is an issue, then kindly call up Ogero at 1515, ask for the number of your municipality, speak to whom is in charge, and see if it will get anywhere. No promises, but it’s better than not even trying! Hopefully we’ll be able to save both our money and the environment.