The government should exercise oversight function on water supply testing conducted throughout the country to ensure the safety of water consumers, Senator Risa Hontiveros said on Tuesday, September 30.

Hontiveros made the call following reports that a Department of Health (DOH)-accredited laboratory allegedly certified as “passed” water samples from a Laguna water district that failed safety tests.

This, after the Senate Committee on Public Services conducted a hearing on the disadvantageous joint venture agreements (JVAs) between water districts and private concessionaires on Monday.

The senator expressed outrage over the allegations of accredited laboratories giving passing marks to unsafe water samples, noting the critical role of such tests in safeguarding the health of Filipino families who depend on the water being supplied by local water districts and concessionaires.  

Hontiveros said the DOH should investigate, and if necessary, penalize two laboratories, Cosmolab and Scientia Tech, which allegedly cleared water samples from Primewater in Sta Cruz, Laguna.

The samples were later discovered to have failed in at least one safety parameter, according to local water district officials.  

“That kind of thing that fails in one parameter, then is released, over-all ‘passed,’ seems like that only happens in movies,” Hontiveros pointed out.

The senator said it is important that the DOH double check the water safety standards of Cosmolab and Scientia Tech. Should there be anomalies, Hontiveros said she supports proposals to have their accreditation revoked.

“It’s amazing that a water sample that should have failed would be passed!” she said.

During the hearing, Hontiveros grilled DOH officials as to their oversight of accredited laboratories conducting water safety tests, which she said need to be drastically and urgently improved.

She cited a case of a water testing facility in Sta. Cruz, Laguna which conducted a water safety testing but yielded a typographical error and showed a failed result.

But the over-all assesment showed that the water quality “passed” the standards.  

“Aren't you overseeing such facilities so that they don't falsify results and put people's health at risk?" Hontiveros asked DOH officials.

In response, DOH Engineer Luis Cruz told the Senate panel that a dedicated body oversees accreditation for water safety tests, the Health Facilities and Services Regulatory Bureau, and that all complaints involving erring laboratories will be referred to the bureau.

But Hontiveros said multiple government agencies and regulatory bodies should work together to provide “urgent solutions” to various issues on water supply in many parts of the country and help ensure that public’s access to basic services should not be impaired by being locked into a disadvantageous contract.

“If basic service commitments are not met, government should not be prevented from stepping in to ensure that Filipino communities receive the water they need,” she said.