The Rigors Of Litigation.docx

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THE RIGORS OF LITIGATION An article submission for Reservoir Magazine By Yusop B. Masdal with Arlene Cervas In the midst of ever-increasing incidence of illegal water service connections, the Legal Department (LD) has most recently up its ante in combatting this nagging spectre with a renewed and re-invigorated focus on criminal litigation and civil collections of penalties thru Small Claims actions. Unabated instances of water pilferage directly affects the economic and financial standing of the Zamboanga City Water District (ZCWD) as it contributes widely to Non-Revenue Water (NRW) which now stands at a very high rate of 45%, a perplexing rate, as it means that a very enormous amount of resources is wasted. Almost half of the treated water released from our Water Treatment Plant (WTP) goes unbilled and wasted through undetected leaks in the web of mainlines s throughout the city streets and main roads. In this connection, water pilferages had been found to contribute as much as 10% to NRW. Unauthorized re-openings of pipes and mainlines as well as other forms of illegalities such as tampering of water meters and direct use of booster pumps pose great harm and hazards to the general public in terms of possible escalation of water-borne infectious diseases such as diarrhoea in children and diphtheria as bacteria could be involuntary introduced to the water systems. Not to mention that escalating illegal connections in the community had often resulted to highly decreased water pressure in the affected areas that we often hear now of complaints from the consuming public that there is no water flowing from their faucets when in in fact, water was abundant and briskly flowing in recent past. In the emergence of these increasingly daunting challenges, Atty. Lovell C. Abad, the LD Department Manager A, in the LD Annual Meeting held most recently, had strategized to counter these hurdles with a multi-pronged approach giving focus on increased criminal litigation, brisker collection of assessed penalties and an invigorated effort to reach and inform the public thru public information campaign throughout the barangays as well as schools and universities in the city.

INCREASING NUMBER OF ILLEGAL CONNECTIONS Since 2002, when ZCWD had formed the Special Task Force (STF) to apprehend and document illegal connections in the city, the LD had accumulated approximately 4,800 cases of illegal connections thru the relentless efforts of the Illegal Connections Investigation (ICIU) under the leadership of SCSO Benjamin A. Buenaflor and since then had collected a total amount of Php _______________ in assessed penalty. Out of this number, about 80% of customers apprehended for illegal connections have requested to settle their assessed penalties thru compromise agreements in view of the Board of Directors’ (BOD) decision to give some respite and amnesty to these violating customers wherein they are now allowed to settle their penalties on staggered basis through the execution of a promissory notes, without any interest. In 2015, the BOD had gone a step further out of humanitarian consideration to erring water consumers authorizing reductions and discounts to as much as 25% of the total assessed penalty. CRIMINAL ACTIONS AGAINST ERRING CUSTOMERS Very high among the most difficult and challenging task of LD is the filing of criminal cases against customers apprehended for illegal connections. Along with the steering authority of the BOD, LD, through its Investigation & Litigation Division (ILD) under the helm of Atty. Vincent F. Fernandez in an OIC capacity, has decided to drastically increased the number of cases line-up and endorsed for criminal actions where in the past years, LD had only targeted 10 cases a year but starting 2014, the number of cases prepared and endorsed to the BOD 1

DRAFT FOR EDITTING & ADDITIONAL INPUT for criminal filing of case had more than doubled, wherein 15 cases where submitted to BOD in 2014, 18 in 2015 and 24 in 2016. This year, in order to show that LD is hell-bent in its drive to curtail the spectre of illegal connections, it is aiming to further improve upon last year’s numbers. The steep number of apprehended illegal connections has left LD with its hands so full that it could only have the capacity to litigate on a very limited number of cases. Thru pre-selection, recidivist customers or customers who repeat their violations despite adequate forewarnings become high in the order of battle. Bypass connections and tampering of water meters are violations that show great depravity of the violator to defraud and steal water that violators of these forms of illegality should be high on the list. On the one hand, unauthorized tapping’s remains the form of pilferage committed by most of the violators. SMALL CLAIMS CASES A very busy concern of LD is the institution of civil cases for the collection of sum of money thru the Rule of Procedure for Small Claims Cases, as amended (SC En Banc Resolution dated 27 October 2009, AM No. 08-8-7SC). This form of action is instituted against customers who entered into compromise settlement by executing a promissory note to settle their penalties on a staggered basis however they have reneged on fulfilling the tenor of such notes. On a year to year basis, LD, through its Legal Services Division (LSD) under able the auspices of Atty. Mark Allen M. Paredes, has decided to exponentially increased efforts to collect these unpaid penalties as committed by customers. While it had been an annual target of LD to file 10 Small Claims cases every year, LD had endorsed to BOD a total of 58 cases in 2015 and 79 cases in 2016 and aiming to better these numbers in the present year. A total of Php 443,368.00 so far had been collected by the Small Claims concern as most of the customers endorsed for filing of cases have opted to pay and continue upon the tenor of their promissory notes, even before reaching the courts. This results to a high return in terms of collection efforts as this amount was anchored on a litigation budget of not more than Php 50,000.00. While this amount is negligible in comparison to the total amount of penalty already collected, the Small Claims remains an effective mode of effecting payments to those apprehended customers who reneged on their payments of penalties. Already, LD had jumpstart the year with five (5) cases actually filed in court and four (4) of these cases have been resolved in favour of ZCWD as the customers involved had agreed to fulfil the tenors of their respective promissory notes. PUBLIC INFORMATION CAMPAIGN In partnership with the Community Relations & External Affairs Section (CREAS), LD continues to reach out to the community and inform citizens about the hazards and consequences of water pilferage. Legal Assistants Yusop B. Masdal and Verly T. Adanza have been very active participating in public consultations conducted in several barangays as well as participating in information caravans visiting several schools and universities throughout the city. This reach-out programs have resulted to the coming of an infomercial in partnership with the Philippine Information Agency (PIA) as well as the production of PR materials such brochures and hand-outs. An information campaign on TV and radio had been planned where officials from LD would talk and answer questions on the matter illegal connections. A RIGOROUS BUT ENDURING TASKS Aside from criminal institution and civil collections against apprehended customers, LD had also been handling the mighty tasks of protecting the rights of ZCWD through several civil cases it is presently handling mostly against contractors who have committed breach of contracts or who have failed to fully implement the provisions of infrastructure and delivery of goods contracts.

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DRAFT FOR EDITTING & ADDITIONAL INPUT In terms of administrative cases, LD had always been in the forefront in the investigation and discipline of erring ZCWD personnel. Truly, LD had on its shoulder the gargantuan burden of litigation, a rigorous task, but it’s an enduring task - a very important task. (END)

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