MCWD to Cebu City Council: No suspension of rate increase

Local

WITH Metro Cebu still reeling from the effects of the recent calamities, the Metropolitan Cebu Water District (MCWD) has ruled out suspending its newly implemented rate increase.

In a formal reply to the Cebu City Council, MCWD General Manager Edgar Donoso said the district could not freeze the increase, which took effect on Oct. 1.

He said that the last adjustment was made a decade ago and that delaying it further would compromise critical projects and service reliability.

Donoso acknowledged the call of Councilor Sisinio Andales, who authored a resolution asking MCWD to defer the increase until residents regain stability after the quake.

The district, he said, recognizes the hardships many households continue to face.

But MCWD also pointed out that the increase had undergone the required processes, including a public hearing where no objections were raised, and that the factors driving the adjustment existed long before the disaster.

“While MCWD fully understands the challenges faced by many Cebuanos today, the implementation of the water rate adjustment has become necessary and long overdue,” Donoso said in the statement. “The last adjustment took effect in January 2015 or ten years ago.”

He added that MCWD deliberately avoided increasing rates during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic to ease pressure on consumers, despite inflation and rising operational expenses.

MCWD said its financial burden has steadily grown due to the expansion of water service coverage, aging infrastructure, and the need to secure new sources amid volatile supply conditions during dry months.

Since 2015, the district reported spending P2.1 billion on facility expansion and rehabilitation, aside from allocating P12 billion for operations. It has also turned to desalination plants to help address shortages triggered by drought and fluctuating water sources.

The district emphasized that despite the new rates, its water remains among the lowest-cost utilities in Metro Cebu, estimating a price of P0.023 per liter, or P0.46 for a 20-liter container, far below the P25 cost of a 20-liter jug of bottled water and considerably lower than electricity, mobile load, or internet expenses.

“As a government-owned and -controlled corporation, MCWD operates as a non-profit entity that does not receive financial support from either the local or national government,” Donoso said. “All revenues are reinvested…to ensure the continued delivery of safe, reliable, and affordable water service.”

The Cebu City Council earlier passed a resolution urging a deferment of the rate increase, saying it could worsen the financial strain on residents who lost homes, jobs, or businesses due to the magnitude 6.0 earthquake.

Andales argued that water remains a basic right and that utilities must exercise caution when adjusting prices during a community’s recovery phase.

The resolution noted that the increase may disproportionately affect daily wage earners, senior citizens, persons with disabilities, and families below the poverty line.

The 12-percent adjustment approved by the Local Water Utilities Administration (LWUA) raised the minimum monthly charge for residential consumers with ½-inch meters from P209.76 to P235.60. Other brackets were also revised:

11–20 cu. m.: P26.04 per cu. m. (from P23.18)

21–30 cu. m.: P30.64 per cu. m. (from P27.28)

Above 30 cu. m.: P75.02 per cu. m. (from P66.79)

The application for the increase was filed in 2022 and approved by LWUA Administrator Jose Moises Salonga last September.

MCWD earlier said the adjustment would also help cover higher bulk water costs, which have jumped from P15.20 per cubic meter to as high as P76, and support major infrastructure such as the P1.1-billion Lusaran Bulk Water Project, which has served upland barangays since 2022.

While firm on the non-suspension of the rate hike, MCWD said it welcomed continued discussions with the city government.

“MCWD remains open to dialogue and partnership with the Cebu City Government and other local government units in addressing the needs of consumers, especially in times of crisis,” the district said.(TGP)