Maynilad offers rewards for reports of illegal connections

MANILA, Philippines - Maynilad Water Services Inc. is offering cash rewards for validated reports of illegal connections in commercial and industrial establishments.

Maynilad launched yesterday its Sugpuin ang Ilegal na Koneksyon AgaD (SIKAD) program which aims to eradicate illegal connections in its West Zone concession area.

The SIKAD program encourages the public to report illegal connections of commercial and industrial establishments. For each confirmed illegal connection, a concerned citizen who made the report can earn a minimum of P15,000 or as high as P120,000 as reward.

The incentive, Maynilad said, is determined by the amount of the under-collection charge of the reported illegal connection.

Christopher J. Lichauco, Maynilad’s head of business area operations, said SIKAD is the latest initiative under the company’s intensified campaign against non-revenue water (NRW) which it hopes to bring down to 48 percent this year.

Maynilad president Ricky P. Vargas assured that Maynilad is continuously engaging in innovative and effective ways to reduce water loss. “The hard-won learnings we have uncovered in battling NRW in our concession area-which has the oldest pipe network in Asia-is something we bring when we work with water companies everywhere. After all, water loss is a concern not just in the West Zone of the Greater Manila area, but also in Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao. We need to work together to protect this precious resource.”

Lichauco added: “We want to tap into the Filipino’s sense of heroism. Water is a precious resource. We need to make sure it is utilized efficiently and managed in an optimal manner. The campaign to eradicate illegal connections plays a big part in making sure this happens.”

The campaign will run for six months, or from April 1 to Sept. 30, 2011.

It will cover commercial and industrial establishments having any of these illegality types: tampered meters, by-pass connections, double tapping, and unregistered connections.

For more information about the SIKAD program, Maynilad encourages the public to call its Customer Service Department at 981-3485 or 0928-5011926.

The SIKAD program also complements Maynilad’s strengthened leak repair campaign.

Last year, Maynilad fixed more than 40,000 leaks and consequently recovered over 200 million liters of water per day.

The company is also continuing its pipe replacement program to modernize and improve the pipe network in its concession area.

Maynilad plans to spend P2.6 billion in 2011 to bring down water loss. Several water districts in the country have formed twinning partnerships with Maynilad to learn best practices in driving down NRW.