MIWD needs board approval for papers asked by City Council

By Rjay Zuriaga Castor

The Metro Iloilo Water District (MIWD) said it needs necessary approvals from its board and joint venture partners before it can provide the documents requested by the Iloilo City Council.

In response to Vice Mayor Ganzon’s July 2 letter, MIWD General Manager Alfredo Tayo III said the board has directed him to refer the vice mayor’s request to their legal counsel.

“MIWD is required to obtain the prior written consent of our JV Partners, as stipulated under Section 29.1 of the JV Agreement,” he added.

Tayo emphasized that after obtaining consent, MIWD is also required to seek the approval of the MIWD board and the JV partners.

Ganzon, chairman of the Committee of the Whole, sent a letter to Metro Pacific Iloilo Water (MPIW) and MIWD requesting copies of annexes associated with the JV agreement between Metro Pacific Water (MPW) and MIWD for the establishment of Metro Iloilo Bulk Water (MIBW) Corporation and MPIW.

The vice mayor also asked the firms to furnish the City Council with reports on the completion of advocacy projects that MIWD is setting up and to submit their five-year and ten-year action plans.

“Understanding the details of these agreements is crucial for clarity on the planned increase in water rates by MPW,” Ganzon stressed.

Atty. Eldrid Antiquiera, a former Iloilo City councilor and president of the private watch group “Grupo Konsumedor,” said he also requested a copy of the JV agreement with the first request logged in 2020.

“We were surprised by MIWD’s response. They said they cannot provide the joint venture agreement with MPIW because it is a trade secret between MIWD and MPIW. Despite several demands, they have not given us a copy,” he said in an interview with Aksyon Radyo Iloilo.

Antiquiera emphasized that MIWD, as a government-owned and controlled corporation, is obligated to provide a copy of the JV agreement to its consumers.

“If they continue to refuse, there are legal remedies available. We can approach the Ombudsman or the Anti-Red Tape Authority to compel them to produce the documents,” he added.

REASONS FOR INCREASE

MIWD has recently applied to the Local Water Utilities Administration to raise the basic rate from P20.00 to P29.00 per cubic meter.

They explained that the rate adjustment is intended to support MPIW’s investment in upgrading MIWD’s assets and pipelines, as well as projects within the Metro Iloilo Concession Area.

MPIW previously emphasized that it has not raised the tariff rate in six years and it remains one of the lowest in Metro Iloilo despite the rising costs of bulk water supply rates, fuel prices, and wages.

The MPIW explained that the rate adjustment has been structured to provide minimal economic impact to the customers while aiding MPIW and MIWD to realize the goals of the JV agreement.

As of April 2024, MPIW serves almost 29,000 water service connections, or 31 percent of Iloilo City.

By the end of 2024, Iloilo City is projected to need 47 million liters of water per day (MLD) to ensure continuous water availability for residents.

Currently, due to aging and damaged pipes resulting in Non-Revenue Water (NRW) or system/commercial losses, MPIW’s billed volume is 29 MLD, with an NRW rate of 44 percent as of the end of 2023, equating to a loss of 18 MLD.

MIWD entered into an agreement with MPW as the bulk water supplier in May 2016, which led to the creation of the MIBW Corp. MIWD has a 20 percent share while METROPAC holds 80 percent under the agreement.

Two years later, MIWD and METROPAC entered into a contract in November 2018 creating MPIW as the water distributor of Iloilo City and seven neighboring towns.