Customers of Maynilad Water Services Inc. in Muntinlupa have started getting rebates in their April bill from the company, which was fined for prolonged water service interruptions from December to February.
A total of 198,315 Maynilad customers being serviced by the company’s Putatan Water Treatment Plant will each get a P323 rebate that will be deducted from their bill. These are in Muntinlupa, Parañaque, Las Piñas and Pasay; and the cities of Bacoor, Imus and Cavite, and municipalities of Rosario and Noveleta in Cavite.
The Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System-Regulatory Office (MWSS-RO) announced the amount of rebate during a forum on March 30 at the Muntinlupa Sports Complex in Barangay Tunasan.
The MWSS-RO imposed a penalty of P63.97 million on Maynilad for the prolonged water service interruptions, which ran up to 18 hours a day.
MWSS-RO computed the rebate by dividing the fine of P63.97 million by the number of affected customers.
Cris Elveña, a Maynilad customer in Muntinlupa, was surprised and happy to find the P323 rebate reflected in her April bill.
Her Maynilad bill for April amounted to P349.53 including government taxes. With the rebate, she only needs to pay P26.53. They are five in the family and their average monthly water bill is about P390.
“It’s okay. It’s like I was free from paying my Maynilad bill for one month. For the minimum users, the rebate is equivalent to three months of free charges,” she said.
The MWSS-RO said it imposed the penalty on Maynilad as the company “failed to meet its service obligation of ensuring the availability of an uninterrupted 24 hour supply of water at seven (7) pounds per square inch (psi) minimum pressure to all connected Customers in its Service Area.”
Last Feb. 8, the Muntinlupa City Council held a public hearing with Maynilad and MWSS-RO representatives to investigate the prolonged water service interruptions in Muntinlupa
Muntinlupa customers complained that brownish water came out of their faucets, making it unusable for drinking or cooking.