Manila Standard, Mar. 27, 2019, Manila Water Waives Charges Penalty For Service Cute Up.pdf

MANILA WATER WAIVES CHARGES; PENATTY FOR SERVICE CUTF UP By Rio N. Araja MANILA Water Co. on Tuesday ofered to waive the bills of customers who

Zarate said the Ayalaled Manila Water should be held accountable for the water shofiage in Metro Manila and Rizal

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suffered seren or more waterless days in March. bul the sule reg- d. ulator said the compan) is not &o off the hook yet for widespread service intenuptions in Metro Manila's east zone. At a news conference, Fernando dela Cruz, Manila Waler plesident, apologized again to their customers for the widesprcad water service interuptions and ofered a one-time reduction in water bills. "We understand the profound frustration that ow cus-

Al

nt?ltli!,

."" of the petitioners against absolutely nd water service for at least seven days continuous or broken days Manila Water, said the waiver was not within March 6 to 3l will not be charged enough. for their March bills," Dela Cruz said. ' "While the waiving ofthe basic charge The minimum charge covers l0 cubic ofManila Water is a positive start it does

tome$ have expressed. And

meters ofwater, aswell as environmental not preclude affected customeF from still going to court and ask for further reand sewer charges. Dela Cruz said lifeline customers dress,'l Zarate said Zarate said aside from the bill waiver, will benefit the most since thefu mum charge, which is also their monthly Manila Water should, among others, also charge, will be both compensate the damage they caused the The waiver will be reflected in their consumers and be ordered to stop collectApril bills. ' ing the rate increase allowed last year by De La Cruz assured customeN that the MWSS. "We will continue to seek accountabilteahnical solutions are being put in

we sincerely apologize for the

to help stabilize th€ water supply

widespread

bution across the east zone . 'As ofMarch 25, our eigh! to

inconvenience that we haye caused all our custome$ in the east zone concession area with this unprecedented water shortage that began on March 6, which is beyond the typical service interruption," he said. "Al1 customerswillhavetheirminimum charge waived, while,..custom-

en in

barangays which experienced Next poge .

mini-

waived.

place

WATERWAIVER.

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Manila Water president Fernando dela Cruz apologizes during a news conference Tuesday to the firm's customers for widespread water interruption, then offers a c 'te.tif il voiuntary bill waiver fo. , who experienced a 24 service in lvlarch. Man'

and Sonny Espiritu

&

:

distd- ity

l2-hour

from Manila Water and MWSS for

this catastrophic, greed-induced problem," Zarate said.

water availability at ground floor level Senator Risa Hontiveros, meanwhile, has reached 97 percent. From a high of welcomed Manila Water's voluntary bill 6l severely affected bamngays, we are waiver program, saying it was "a big win now down to eight barangays which are for ordinary paying custome$." dependent on interim network solutions, "This is certainly a big victory for static tanks or water tankers," he said. consumels. But we must not stop here. "Manila Watel remains hard at work There is more that needs to be done in to bring back 24/7 water service to all order to prevent this crisis from happenits customgrs even at reduced pressure. ing again," Hontiveros said. W€ continuo to work with the MWSS- Also on Tuesday, Velasco denied any Regulatory Office and Corporatc Office under-the-tabte deals in the Chinesein addressing this situation in accordance funded Kaliwa Dam project, which is exwith the directive ofour good President," pected to meet Metro Manila's growing demand for water. Metropolita.n Waterworks and Sewer- He said speculation was fueled by Globage System Administrator Reynaldo Ve- al Utility Development Corp. chiefexecu-

he added.

l

lasco;rhowev€r,saidtheyhavey€ttostudy,tiveofficeranddirectorToshikazuNomu-

what penalties they will impose on Manila m's statement that tie China-funded dam Water, one oftwo private concessionaires. will cost $800 million, way higher than "There are other penalties under the the government figure of$248 million. "We donl know where he got that concession agreemront that they will to face," Velasco said during apress con- figure," Velasco said in Filipino, With ference. Marlcel Cruz, Othel Campos and Vito

have

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PAq€'t

Bayan Muna P?rty-list Rsp. Carlos Barcelo

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