Nangako ang pamunuan ng Manila Water na tatalima sa multang ipinataw sa kanila ng Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) kasunod ng issue ng water shortage noong nakaraang buwan.
Ayon kay Manila Water Pres. Ferdinand dela Cruz bagamat hindi sila ang ugat ng nagkulang na supply ng tubig sa Angat Dam ay handa nilang harapin ang parusang napagdesisyunan ng MWSS board.
“We will abide by the MWSS decision to impose a penalty. While we are not the root cause for the inadequacy of the raw water supply coming from Angat Dam which we are mandated to treat and distribute, Manila Water, as agent and contractor of water services of MWSS, hold ourselves accountable for our inability to provide our consumers with the usual uninterrupted water service,” ani Dela Cruz.
Iginiit ng opisyal na hindi naging sapat ang supply ng tubig dahil sa mas tumaas na bilang ng demand.
Hindi raw kasi nagbago ang 1,600-million liters kada araw na alokasyon ng tubig mula ng magsimula ang kanilang concession sa Angat Dam noong 1997.
Kumpara raw kasi sa 3-milyong customer na kanilang sine-serbisyuhan noon ay lumobo pa ito sa 7-milyon ngayon.
“This raw water allocation has remained unchanged at 1,600 MLD (Millions of Liters Per Day) since the concession started in 1997 when the East Zone had a population of only 3 million people. Today, Manila Water serves a population of almost 7 million people whose per capita consumption has significantly increased through over two decades of economic progress in Metro Manila,” dagdag ng opisyal.
Nagpasaring naman si Dela Cruz sa MWSS dahil dati na raw nilang isinulong ang development ng mga bagong water resources, pero hindi umano ito pinansin ng tanggapan bagamat mandato daw nila ito sa ilalim ng Concession Agreement.
“However, the development of new water sources is, under the Concession Agreement, ultimately the responsibility of MWSS.”
Batay sa desisyon ng MWSS Board, may kabuuang P1.134-bilyon ang sanction na ipinataw sa Manila Water.
Ang P534-milyon mula rito ay nagsilbing multa, habang ang P600-milyon ay gagamitin umanong pondo para sa pagpapatayo ng bagong water supply source.
“The water shortage was an eye-opener, and sad to say, the new MWSS Board inherited this lingering problem having assumed office only in February 2017. We are on a catch-up mode and it’s only this administration under President Rodrigo Duterte that we have seriously put on track a realistic and doable water security roadmap to ensure adequate water supply,†ani MWSS administrator Reynaldo Velasco.
