Mayor Benitez dismayed by PrimeWater’s performance

By Glazyl Y.Masculino

BACOLOD City – What do we have right now?

This was the question raised by Mayor Alfredo “Albee” Benitez, as he expressed disappointment over the performance of PrimeWater to supply water here, amid the adverse effects of El Niño phenomenon.

In a press briefing yesterday, Benitez said that PrimeWater has failed to provide a quality water supply to their consumers, citing a provision in the contract which states that “within five years from November 2020, PrimeWater should ensure consumers enjoy a 24-hour uninterrupted water supply by the end of the second year.”

“So obviously, this provison has not been complied,” Benitez said, adding that only 55 percent of the population is being served by PrimeWater, while others are waterless.

Benitez said that according to PrimeWater, they have an existing 70 million liters per day (MLD), but it decreased to 50 MLD because of drought. “It’s short by 20 MLD to begin with,” he added.

Benitez said that PrimeWater said that they need 90 MLD, but upon verification with water experts, the city needs 125 MLD. “It has a big discrepancy,” he added.

Benitez said that he wanted to take this up with the Bacolod City Water District (Baciwa). “What have they done since 2022? And it should have been already rectified. If not, penalty should have been imposed,” he added.

“So may penalty, ano natabo sa PrimeWater? This is one thing I want Baciwa to answer. It has been a done deal prior to my assumption to office,” Benitez said.

Benitez said that he asked Baciwa to furnish him a copy of the violation of PrimeWater for a possible termination of their contract or re-negotiation.

He said that Baciwa told him that they are collating everything for them to be able to submit the necessary documents by this week. “From there, I will take a look and review what is the best next step to undertake,” he added.

Benitez said that he reached out to Baciwa and asked for a water security plan, which does not only address the effects of El Niño, but overall planning perspective when it comes to water supply.

Benitez said that part of the plan is to have a buffer in case of emergency. “It doesn’t make sense if we extract water from deep wells because it is not sustainable. We can use these instead as reserve or buffer in case there’s a problem on water supply, but not as a primary source of water,” he added.

He also mentioned the water which is not transparent anymore. “What is the plan moving forward from that?” There is no substitute if I take a look at it, he said.

The mayor noted that there is a need to replace old pipes, which means there is also a need to invest. “The only way for us to be able to move forward is if there is a sizeable investment for a water grid to ensure quality water service,” he said.

Benitez said they wanted Baciwa to show those with good track records and experiences to proceed with the water security plan.

In the case of PrimeWater, Benitez stressed that they have not seen a concrete investment or steps from them to make the water service more efficient.

He said that in the past few weeks, the city government has been looking for water sources to aid some barangays with no water supply. But, he said that he hasn’t heard from PrimeWater, which should have been directly involved in providing a solution to the water crisis.

“Wala gid ko kabatyag sang ila (PrimeWater) bulig or support,” he said, adding that the city with the help of Chamber Volunteer and Amity Volunteer Fire Brigades have been conducting water rationing in some barangays to address the water shortage.

Last January, the city held a water summit, wherein it was found out that lack of water supply is the main problem here. It was discussed at that time that 20 MLD is needed by the city to address the water concern. Fifteen MLD will be sourced out from the bulk water supplier, while 5 MLD will come from Buro-Buro Spring in Barangay Alangilan here.

“We need 65 MLD today, not just 40 MLD,” he said.

Benitez also said that as of today, he has not seen a contract between those who are willing to supply water here and PrimeWater.

He said that suppliers who expressed interest initiated to start laying down the pipes even if there’s no contract yet from PrimeWater, which the latter promised to release a month after the water summit last January.

“I can sense that this company doesn’t seem caring and serious. That’s why I’m taking steps to push everybody,” he said.

Benitez said that it is not just about the lack of improvement from PrimeWater, but their violation of a certain provision of the contract is glaring.

“I’m seriously doubting their concern for the city because this is basic utility wherein everybody is affected, and it has to be somebody with passion and compassion for the people,” he said, adding that it seems they don’t care about the water crisis here.

Benitez said that they have discussed it several times, but he has not seen any official permanent movement from PrimeWater. He said that he will no longer give warnings, as he is considering everything.

Benitez said that it is difficult to deal with somebody whose mindset is not the same as what others see about people’s needs.

“I will ask our lawyers to take a look to elevate this for a proper legal action,” he said.

With the tremendous growth of the city, the mayor said that they can imagine an inward migration of people here. “We’re looking at what’s best moving forward to prevent this from happening again,” he said.

“This is the time that we need everybody to help each other and move towards the betterment of the city,” he said. (With a report from Dolly Yasa)