Suan airs public sentiments over unresolved water woes in Oro

“Kita diri sa Cagayan de Oro City we are a billionaire city. In fact our budget is about P7 billion and yet one of the basic human rights, the access to clean and reliable drinking water, daghan kaayo sa atong mga kaigsoonan ang wala makatagamtam niini.”

This was pointed out by Councilor Lordan G. Suan as a rejoinder to the special report of Councilor Zaldy O. Ocon’s special report during yesterday’s regular session presided over by Vice Mayor Raineir Joaquin V. Uy.

The councilor cited the sentiments of Kagayanons, most of whom have reported from low pressure to no water supply in their areas for several years already.

Some residents even complained of lack of sleep as there were instances when water supply occurred from midnight to 3:00 o’clock in the morning, Suan further said.

Based on the report submitted by the Commission on Audit (COA) in May 2021, Cagayan de Oro City pegged a total of 58.78 percent non-revenue water (NRW) or 193 percent above the maximum acceptable rate (20 percent) as allowed by the Local Water Utilities Administration (LOWA), the councilor reported.

Non-revenue water (NRW) means bulks of water produced and released by the provider but were lost before it reached the consumers. It may be due to leakages, theft, and meter inaccuracies, he explained.

With this, Suan asked for an update on the P500 million Counterpart Seed Fund allocated by the city out of its 2020 Annual Budget to finance various water installation projects of the Cagayan de Oro Water District (COWD) in the city.

He urged his colleagues to give this concern the most preferential attention since the problem has been going on for several years already.

“Sama sa giingon ni Kagawad Zaldy O. Ocon, mas maayo siguro nga tan-awon nato unsa may nakasulat ana? At the very least we should call the officials of the COWD para malamdagan mi nganong inani kadako ang NRW nga ang allowable is 20 percent ra man. Daghan kaayo tubig gakakalas dili moabot sa mga Kagayanons, luoy kaayo, lubog ug walay agas,” Suan manifested.

The matter was referred to the committee on public utilities chaired by Councilor Teodulfo E. Lao, Jr., for appropriate action.