WATER CRISIS IN CAGAYAN DE ORO TO BE RESOLVED

President Bongbong Marcos is confident that Cagayan de Oro's water problem will be fixed. During the President's visit to the province, he announced that he had spoken with Manny Pangilinan and he agreed to restore the water supply to the province.

Unpaid debt causes water problems on the residents of Cagayan de Oro (Photo courtesy of Rappler)

Pangilinan is the Chairman of Cagayan de Oro Bulk Water Inc. or (COBI) which supplies water to the province. It will be recalled that the company stopped its service because the Cagayan de Oro Water District refused to pay its P400 million debt resulting in at least 13 communities in Cagayan de Oro and Misamis Oriental currently experiencing a tap water shortage.

The local government administers COWD, but the President has assigned the Local Water Utilities Administration to study COWD management.

He said LWUA could ensure the water district complies with its obligations to suppliers and customers and ease the process of setting reasonable water tariffs, thereby resolving the province's problem with water supply.

"We talked to Mr. Manny Pangilinan of Cagayan de Oro Bulk Water Inc. to restore normal water supply. He is ready to meet with your alcalde to end this problem and provide the necessary water to over 60,000 citizens here in CDO,” PBBM stated.

Pangilinan's camp confirmed the President's statements, saying that the company is also determined to iron out the problem.

Uy's declaration, which permits local authorities to deploy police forces to mitigate a water emergency, was authorized by the municipal council. In order to safeguard valves and prevent any tampering, police officers were dispatched to water facilities as part of these preparations.

COBI has been applying pressure to the water district to settle a debt of P400 million, while providing COWD with approximately 80,000 cubic meters of treated water daily. The majority of the disputed debt, which has accumulated since COBI raised its water pricing in 2021, is the price differential, but COWD refused to acknowledge it.

Mayor Rolando “Klarex” Uy said the state of emergency he declared early this month will remain in effect until the crisis caused by the disconnection of the city’s water supply is resolved. 

Source: Philippine Daily Inquirer 

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