Cagayan de Oro City Mayor Rolando ‘Klarex’ Uy reiterated on Friday his position opposing a provision in the contract between the city’s water district and bulk water supplier that imposes a water rate hike every three years.

 

In his program ‘Inyong Alagad: Mayor Klarex Uy,’ Mayor Klarex referred to a provision in the contract between the Cagayan de Oro City Water District (COWD) and the Cagayan de Oro Bulk Water Inc. (COBI) that allows COBI to impose almost 4 pesos water rate increase on the water district or 3.97 pesos every three years.

 

MetroPac Water Investment Corporation (MWIC) and COWD entered into Joint Venture Corporation resulting to COBI.

 

‘I want that provision rescind/revoked’, Mayor Klarex said in Visayan.

 

Mayor Klarex said the public will be burdened with paying off the water rate increase on top of their rising daily expenses.

 

Both COWD and COBI are locked in a dispute over the payment of P426 million in collectibles as a result of the over P3 rate increase.

 

However, the COWD Negotiating Team, led by Board of Director Dr. Gerry Caño, says that COBIs computation that reached to 497 million is highly questionable based on the provisions of their contract.

Negotiations between COWD and COBI are underway to resolve the dispute amid a looming April 30 deadline imposed by COBI for COWD to settle the collectibles.

 

Last Tuesday, Mayor Klarex met with officials of the city’s other bulk water suppliers, namely: JE Hydro, Kyogojo; Mindanao Cooperative Water Services and South Balibago Waterworks, who all assured him that they will cover the shortfall in water supply, if COBI disconnects their service to COWD.

 

‘I didn’t see any basis for justifying the water rate increase every three years (in the COWD-COBI contract),’ Mayor Klarex said in Visayan.

 

A task force on water supply and distribution created by Mayor Klarex to look into solutions to address the water service disconnection raised by COBI had yet to submit their recommendations to Mayor Klarex.

Still, Mayor Klarex said he’s open to any bulk water supplier offering their services to the city so long as they’re capable to do so.

 

‘I’m open to anyone who has the capacity (to serve the city), even COBI, I don’t have any problems with them. But I have to uphold public welfare and my position is that provision (in the COWD-COBI contract) be revoked,’ Mayor Klarex said in Visayan. (Stephen Capillas of City Information Office)