MCWD wins court battle on water rate increases

The Metropolitan Cebu Water District and the Local Water Utilities Administration won in court against five Cebu taxpayers who questioned their water rate increase after the Regional Trial Court dismissed the case filed against them for lack of cause of action.

RTC Branch 18 presiding judge Gilbert Moises in his order dated February 20, 2007 stated that the application for a temporary restraining order and preliminary mandatory injunction by the plaintiffs was denied while the motion to dismiss by the defendant was granted.

Redemptorist project director Esteban Colasito, lawyer Deolito Alvarez, Nestor Nuez, Joselito Lopez and Vicente Espina Jr. earlier questioned the rate increases imposed by the water district on Sept. 1, 2005 and July 1, 2006.

They asked the court to issue a TRO and then a preliminary injunction to stop MCWD from further collecting the new rates saying Metro Cebu water consumers have been made to pay higher water rates, which is allegedly illegal and void.

The plaintiffs said that the increases were illegal because MCWD got its go signal for the increases from the LWUA when the latter had no authority to do so.

Under Executive Order No. 123 promulgated on September 12, 2002, the proposed rate increases should have been submitted to the National Water Resources Board which has the authority to regulate water tariffs and water rates.

"Plaintiffs do not challenge the validity of Executive Order No. 123. On the contrary, they invoked the provisions of the subject EO to support their arguments," the four-page court decision read.

The decision added that plaintiffs should have initiated their action with the appropriate government agency, in this case to the NWRB, the adverse decision of which can be appealed to the Office of the President, before resorting to judicial intervention.

The court further ruled that plaintiff's application for a TRO has no urgent and compelling reason.

To recall, the water district first increased its water rate by 12 percent in September 2005. Another 12 percent hike took effect on July 2006 increasing the price for the first 10 cubic meters to P136 from P122.

About 80,000 households in MCWD's concession areas consume a monthly average of 30 cubic meters of water. MCWD serves consumers from Talisay City in the south to Liloan town in the north including the cities of Cebu, Mandaue and Lapu-Lapu.

The MCWD earlier explained that the increases were necessary to cover operation and capital expenses as well as to fund projects needed to improve water supply and distribution system.

MCWD had said that a TRO will reduce their expected revenues by "more than 25 percent or P500,000 per day" and it will suffer "irreparable damages" if it stops collecting the increase because it does not receive any subsidy from the national or local governments. - Mitchelle L. Palaubsanon