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[av_heading heading=’City may get another water distributor ‘ tag=’h3′ style=’blockquote modern-quote’ size=” subheading_active=’subheading_below’ subheading_size=’15’ padding=’10’ color=” custom_font=” av-medium-font-size-title=” av-small-font-size-title=” av-mini-font-size-title=” av-medium-font-size=” av-small-font-size=” av-mini-font-size=” admin_preview_bg=”]
BY GLENDA SOLOGASTOA
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ILOILO City – Another water distributor could further improve this city’s water supply.
Manila Water Philippine Ventures, Inc. (MWPV), a subsidiary of the country’s oldest conglomerate Ayala Corporation, wrote Mayor Jose Espinosa III expressing interest in meeting the city’s water supply and distribution needs.
“Sa akon ‘ya basta public utilities…whoever can assure me of (good) service, welcome gid,” Espinosa told city hall reporters yesterday.
MWPV particularly wanted to apply for a franchise to distribute and sell water in the districts of Mandurriao, Molo and Arevalo.
Espinosa said he forwarded MWPV’s letter to the Sangguniang Panlungsod’s (SP) committee on public utilities for further study.
“Ang akon ‘ya theory kapin pa sa water, maayo pa nga mawad-an ka sang kuryente, indi lang tubig,” said Espinosa.
The chairperson of the committee on public utilities, Councilor R Leone Gerochi, welcomed MWPV’s interest to invest in Iloilo City.
Metro Iloilo Water District (MIWD) could not fully meet the city’s water requirements, he said.
MIWD may have spread itself too thin, Gerochi added.
“MIWD’s franchise does not only cover Iloilo City; it covers some nearby towns in Iloilo province. Lapad-lapad ang area nga ginaserbisyuhan sang MIWD. In Iloilo City alone, indi ang MIWD kaserbisyu, indi niya maubos,” said Gerochi.
MIWD has over 30,000 concessionaires in Iloilo City and the towns of Oton, Pavia, Santa Barbara, San Miguel, Leganes, and Cabatuan in Iloilo province.
The three districts where MWPV wanted to operate were smaller than MIWDs’, the councilor noted.
He did not see any legal conflict if the city government would allow another water distributor to come in.
There is no exclusivity of franchise when it comes to water distribution, according to Gerochi.
He also observed that through the years, MIWD had difficulty improving its service.
“Perhaps this is because MIWD did not have competitors,” said Gerochi.
His committee set a public hearing on MWPV’s application on Monday, 2 p.m. at city hall.
“It will be transparent, it will be open. You can ask about (their proposed water) rates. These things are important,” said Gerochi.
He also stressed the importance of giving Ilonggo consumers alternative water sources.
Early this year, MIWD started rehabilitating its old and leaking water pipes. General Manager Imelda Magsuci clarified that water supply was not the problem but the distribution, thus the rehabilitation of pipes.
The biggest challenged for MIWD is reducing its non-revenue water – water that has been produced but is “lost” before it reaches the customer due to leaks, theft or illegal connections, and metering inaccuracies./PN
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