Manila Water’s customers will receive compensation for the trouble caused by the water shortage, the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System Regulatory (MWSS) Office announced today in a press conference.
MWSS chief regulator Patrick Ty said that Manila Water’s residential customers will be given a minimum rebate of PHP153.93 (US$2.92) for every 10 cubic meters consumed, reported the Philippine Star.
Only those who have been Manila Water customers as of March 31 this year will be given rebates.
Meanwhile, those who experienced no water supply for seven consecutive days from March 6 to 31 will be given an additional rebate of PHP2,197.94 (US$41.78). MWSS estimated that there are 140,000 customers who will receive the additional rebate, reported ABS-CBN News.
Ty said a customer’s pending bill can be deducted from the rebate. The rebates will be reflected in the customer’s June bill.
“It’s similar to an overpayment,” GMA News quoted him saying. “You can even use this amount if you have an unpaid balance with Manila Water. You can credit this to that amount, you can apply this to all your bills including previous unpaid balances.”
MWSS will deduct the amount needed for the rebates from the PHP1.134 billion (US$21.712 million) penalty which it imposed on Manila Water in April for its failure to supply enough water to its clients, who are residents of Manila’s east zone and the Rizal province. About PHP600 million (US$11.488 million) of the fine will be used by the government to create a new source of water.
The multi-million peso penalty was imposed on Manila Water after it failed to abide by the terms of their contract with the government. According to MWSS, Manila Water failed to comply with the contract’s Article 10, Section 10.4, which stated that if the latter is unable to provide water for more than 60 days, the MWSS has the right to slap them with monetary penalties.
At present, the water shortage issue hasn’t been fully resolved. Certain places such as Angono, Bingangonan, Cainta, and Antipolo in Rizal will experience water interruption for as long as 17 hours from today until tomorrow, according to advisories posted by Manila Water on its official Facebook account.
As many as 1.2 million households have been affected by the water shortage. President Rodrigo Duterte claimed that the shortage was an artificial crisis created by some people so they can charge higher rates to consumers.
