CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY – The city council here passed proposed Resolution No. 2023-542 during its regular session on Tuesday, November 28, requesting the Cagayan de Oro City Water District (COWD) to defer its proposed 60 percent water rate increase in the next three years.
Councilor Joyleen Mercedes Balaba strongly opposed the proposal, saying that it is not the perfect time, even in the coming years, considering that there are still areas in this city experiencing problems with their water supply.
THE Cagayan de Oro City Water District offers free drinking water during the civic-military parade and street dancing competition at the last Higalaay Festival on August 27, 2023. (COWD Facebook page)
“Although there is a need for improvements, we should not immediately impose an increase on the people if you cannot justify that there is a water supply in the entire Cagayan de Oro City,” Balaba said when the COWD – the first water district to be established in the country – presented its 10-year development plan to the council.
In its presentation, the COWD proposed a water rate increase of 40 percent in residential, commercial, and government categories in 2024 and sought an additional 10 percent hike in all three classifications in 2025 and 2026.
The last water rate increase in this city was implemented in 2011 that resulted in the existing minimum charge of P218.40 per 10 cubic meters.
If the proposed increase is realized, the minimum charge next year will rise to P305.76 per 10 cubic meters, P327.60 in 2025, and P349.44 in 2026.
COWD General Manager Engr. Antonio Young said that the water rate adjustment is necessary to enable them to sustain their operations as they do not get any subsidies from the national and city governments.
“Our water rate is still in 2011, and there was a lot of inflation that happened from 2011 to 2023,” he added.
Young said some consumers experience no water supply for 24 hours because of non-revenue water (NRW) from leaks and illegal water connections but maintained they are addressing this.
The COWD has been supplying 199,929 cubic meters of water to this city with the help of its two partner suppliers – Cagayan de Oro Bulk Water Inc. (COBI) and South Balibago Resources Inc. (SBRI).
COBI was asked not to implement an increase and the COWD is still waiting for the company’s decision which is expected next month, Young said.
Councilor James Judith II asked the COWD general manager if they could implement a 10 percent water rate increase similar to Cebu City as the proposed 40 percent increase next year is too much for consumers.
CAGAYAN de Oro City Water District General Manager Engr. Antonio Young answers questions from the media after his presentation at the city council session on Tuesday, November 28. (Franck Dick Rosete)
Young said that even though Cagayan de Oro and Cebu City have the same Class A water category, there are a lot of commercial and industrial users in Cebu, and their rates are much higher, which means they can subsidize the residential consumers.
The minimum rates of other water service providers here as well as in Misamis Oriental were presented to the council, and it showed that COWD has the lowest minimum charge compared to others that range from P300 to P801.
Before the COWD can implement an increase, it still needs to conduct a series of public hearings, which will be conducted in four different venues. After this, it needs to submit the documentary requirements to the Local Water Utilities Administration (LWUA), which, Young said, would take at least three to six months to be approved.
After LWUA’s approval, the proposal needs to be approved by the COWD Board of Directors as well.