Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, December 11) — Maynilad Water Services Inc. dismissed allegations it was passing on to consumers millions of pesos spent for sports-related activities.
Senator Win Gatchalian in a legislative inquiry on Wednesday grilled the Manny Pangilinan-led water concessionaire over the taxes and other corporate expenses it was charging to consumers.
“Let’s be clear, business taxes, yung pang-basketball ninyo, meron pa ko nakita mga ibang gastusin na wala namang kinalaman… sa distribution ng tubig,” Gatchalian said in the Senate’s hearing on the creation of the Department of Water.
[Translation: Let’s be clear, business taxes, the money you spent for basketball, I also saw other expenses that have nothing to do with the distribution of water.]
Randolph Estrellado, Chief Finance Officer of Maynilad said it does not include these miscellaneous expenses in the amount submitted to the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) for recovery.
“Kami mismo, mga donations ho, mga sports events, hindi na ho namin yan sinasali (We do not include donations and sports events)” Estrellado said.
“Una kami nagtatanggal kasi sinasubmit po namin sa regulatory office yung expenses for recovery so bukod dun sila rin sinasala rin nila so baka may nakita pa sila na hindi pa namin natatanggal, nagtatanggal rin po sila,” he added.
[Translation: First, we remove those from the list we submit to the regulatory office for recovery so aside from that the regulators also filter items that we have yet to remove.]
The Maynilad Water Dragons finished second this year in the MVP Olympics, which was joined by 13 other Pangilinan-led companies.
Maynilad reiterated it is willing to discuss with MWSS provisions in the 1997 concession agreement that the government finds objectionable. Manila Water made the same commitment.
“For the record, we submit all our expenses to MWSS for review. Wala po kaming baketball team (We do not have a basketball team)… We are more than willing to sit down and negotiate,” Manila Water Corporation President and CEO Jose Almendras said.
Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra earlier said the government will remove the authority of Maynilad and Manila Water to pass on to customers “certain corporate expenditures that are not concerned at all with the distribution of water.” These were among the provisions the department found as disadvantageous to the government.
The supposedly onerous contracts will end in 2022, after the MWSS revoked the resolution extending the effectivity to 2037.
The water concessionaires have waived billions in refund, as ordered by an arbitration court, after President Rodrigo Duterte threatened to sue them.
