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23 April 2002
Workers Calls for Congressional Inquiry into Maynilad’s Abandonment of Obligation
More
than 200 hundred workers belonging to the Alliance of Progressive Labor
(APL) would march to Congress today to ask for a congressional
investigation on Maynilad’s abandonment of its obligation in certain
areas of Quezon and Caloocan Cities.
Two
years after paying their water connection fees, hundreds of workers from
District 1 in Caloocan City and District 2 in Quezon City trooped to the
headquarters
of Maynilad Water Services last April 19 2002 for a scheduled
appointment with Rafael Alunan III, president of the water concessionaire,
to demand the delivery of a long-delayed promise of water service
connection in their area and to protest water rate increases. But just
like the water pipes that were never installed, Mr. Alunan failed to show
up.
Instead of meeting with the protesters, Mr. Frankie Arellano, Senior Vice President for Corporate Affairs of Maynilad, announced in a television interview that they have instructed their people to visit the area to “study the possibility of installing water services.”
“So, two years after collecting connection fees, all they intend to do now is to look into the possibility of providing water services,” Josua Mata, APL Secretary General said. “Maynilad has obviously abandoned its obligation to provide efficient water services in its concession area,” he added.
In
a statement, APL said that, “privatization of water has miserably
failed. It led to a much higher average water tariff and failed to improve
water services.”
Hundreds
of workers from APL would march to Congress today to file petitions to the
Committee on Privatization and Government Corporations, as well as to the
Committee on Economic Affairs to investigate Maynilad’s capacity as a
water concessionaire. These Congressional bodies are set to start their
investigation of the amendment of the concession agreement between the
government and water companies today.
Alliance of Progressive Labor
(APL) 2002
Manila, Philippines
email: apl@surfshop.net.ph
http://aplnet.tripod.com