Potential 780% water rate hike 'immoral,' Anakpawis says
MANILA, Philippines – The public should oppose a 780-percent increase in water rates that Manila Water has said might happen because of a P921.5 million fine from the government, a party-list representing workers and farmers said.
Anakpawis party-list said it would be immoral “that the penalty against them is being passed to the subscribers, who are actually their victims."
The warning of a rate hike came as a result of the Supreme Court’s decision to fine the group P921.5 million for violations of the Clean Water Act. In its motion for reconsideration, Manila Water said the SC decision fining them for failing to complete their sewerage projects by 2009, or five years after the law took effect, and an additional running daily fine of P322,102 until the sewerage projects are completed, has no basis.
"If the concessionaires were to compress into five years as the SC ruling wants what was planned as a 40-year project, the hundreds of billions of pesos required would lead to an increase in the water bill of subscribers, leaving them less money for other necessities and triggering higher inflation," Manila Water said.
'Sewerage works to worsen traffic'
They also warned of worse traffic congestion if the decision is not overturned because they would have to dig up countless roads to conform to the law. "The daily loss of P3.5 billion caused by existing traffic congestion could balloon significantly," it said.
Ariel Casilao, former Anakpawis party-list representative, said that it should have been enough for Manila Water to "wreak havoc" on consumers who endured water shortages last March. He added the company "posted a P6.5 billion net income in 2018 and P2.9 billion in the year’s first half."
Casilao said "the water utility system in the country will be better off nationalized, as accountability will lie on public officials and threats of immoral water rate hikes will be eradicated."
Anakbayan’s statement comes in the midst of what many groups have recognized as a mass transportation crisis.
A recent 2019 survey by commute group Komyut revealed that commuters spend around two hours going to and from their work, for a total of four hours daily. Another study by the Boston Consulting Group showed Metro Manila had the third worst traffic in Southeast Asia as its motorists and commuters are wasted an average of more than an hour each day in traffic.
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