AN OFFICIAL of the Metropolitan Cebu Water District (MCWD) said their customers still have to pay the minimum charge even if they only consume a little amount of water.
This was the explanation of MCWD spokesperson Edna Inocando, after the water service provider was criticized by its customers for collecting payments even if its water supply is inadequate in some parts of its service areas.
Inocando said a consumer’s monthly minimum service charge for zero to 10 cubic meters of water is P152 .
“Whether they consume water or not, we will deliver to them the bill as long as they have active water meter or connection,” she told Superbalita Cebu in a mix of Cebuano and English.
MCWD provides water in the cities of Cebu, Mandaue, Talisay and Lapu-Lapu and the municipalities of Consolacion, Liloan, Compostela and Cordova.
Edgar Ortega, acting assistant general manager of MCWD, said they are catering to around 200,000 service connections, and only around five percent of the consumers pay the minimum service charge.
Ortega said MCWD can only supply 204,000 cubic meters of water per day, a decrease from the usual 238,000 cubic metes of water per day.
As to the consumers who used up 20 cubic meters of water in the months of April and May, MCWD will give them a five-percent discount on their bills. / PAC