Senator Imee Marcos has started moves in the Upper House to investigate the water concession contracts and accomplishment records of Manila Water and Maynilad Water Services.
Marcos has filed Senate Resolution 259 to examine which provisions in the original and extended concession agreements were contrary to government interests and why the two water companies have failed to meet their respective public service obligations as stated in the contracts.
The water companies have continued to draw the ire of President Rodrigo Duterte, even after they have backed down from claiming more than P10 billion in business indemnities from the government and insisting on water rate hikes in January.
“Itutuloy pa rin ni PRRD (President Rodrigo Roa Duterte) ang laban sa ‘di makatarungang kontrata hinggil sa ating tubig! Kung natalo sila agad sa Round One, tuluyan pang titiklop ang mga mapagsamantala sa mga susunod na kaso,” the legislator said.
“Manila Water and Maynilad have not proven any legacy.”
“Wala naman talagang legacy na napapatunayan itong Manila Water at Maynilad kahit na magtatapos na yung 20-year deadline na naibigay sa kanila para i-ensure ang 24-hour suplay ng tubig sa Metro Manila at karatig probinsiya,” the lawmaker added.
Water concession agreements require both companies to ensure an uninterrupted supply of drinking-quality water “not later than June 30, 2000,” or three years after the government have privatized water services.
However, daily water interruptions since October have become “the rule rather than the exception,” the lady senator said.
“There is an apparent social inequality in water rationing schedules.”
Marcos also called out the apparent “social inequality” in water rationing schedules imposed by Manila Water and Maynilad.
Many exclusive residential villages in Metro Manila have only four-hour interruptions starting late at night, while lower-income areas in Quezon City, Caloocan, Valenzuela, Manila, and the neighboring cities of Bacoor and Imus in Cavite have 19-hour to 21-hour interruptions that run through the day, Marcos noted.
By their own admission, Manila Water and Maynilad have also failed to install adequate sewage treatment systems, causing 86 percent of wastewater to continue spilling untreated into rivers and bays, she said.
Senate Resolution 259’s inquiry in aid of legislation also seeks to better craft concession agreements in the future, Marcos added.