By Lane Afable, News Editor
Muntinlupa Lone District Representative Jaime Fresnedi is outraged over Maynilad’s failure to address recurring water interruptions that continue to disrupt daily life across the city—affecting households, businesses, and even government operations.
Based on accounts gathered from his constituents, Fresnedi said, the recurring outages have fueled public frustration, particularly because residents expect prompt and immediate assistance whenever water service is interrupted.
“Affected constituents claim that it doesn’t feel like there should be a water tanker roaming around every time there are water service interruptions. Shouldn’t they be there right away?” he said.
Fresnedi further recalled that during a town hall meeting held last month, Maynilad had committed to coordinate with city officials to ensure the prompt deployment of water tankers for emergency distribution. However, he said the promised response has not materialized.
“Unfortunately, it’s not being done. There are no water tankers seen circulating. That is the general sentiment,” he said, in an interview.
He said his legislative team is compiling relevant data as part of preparations for a formal resolution seeking congressional investigation, aimed at determining accountability and improving service delivery in Muntinlupa.
The lawmaker emphasized that the disruptions force residents—especially those with work obligations the following day—to stay up late waiting for water, a condition he said should not be tolerated.
“Many residents, especially those with jobs in the following day, are staying up late just to wait for water, which should not be the case,” said Fresnedi.
The Muntinlupa solon, a member of the majority bloc in the House committee on local government, said he intends to push for stronger oversight and corrective action.
Fresnedi also urged Maynilad to undertake meaningful improvements to stabilize service, arguing that the repeated outages have already caused significant stress, inconvenience, and lost productivity among residents.
He also addressed Maynilad’s explanation that water quality from Laguna Lake has been deteriorating.
According to Fresnedi, such claims are being used to justify ongoing unannounced interruptions, despite the continuing impact on the city.
Maynilad has maintained that it is working to address the situation through upgrades and investments, including new machinery and other operational improvements.
However, Fresnedi said these efforts have not produced noticeable service improvements in recent weeks.
The congressman also called on the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS), the regulator of water concessionaires, to exercise its full authority to ensure compliance.
“I hope that our water regulator should practice pro-active measures that will compel the water concessionaires to deliver a stable and efficient water services for our people. And that its power should not be limited to just imposing penalties,” Fresnedi said.
Last month, Muntinlupa Mayor Ruffy Biazon and other city officials demanded that Maynilad present a concrete service recovery plan to address recurring water interruptions affecting residents, businesses, and local government operations.
In two letters dated March 11, Biazon invited Maynilad President and CEO Ramoncito Fernandez and COO Christopher Lichauco to a meeting to address prolonged supply problems and outline both immediate and long-term measures to improve service reliability.
City officials said the continued outages have raised concerns regarding Maynilad’s operational response, customer communication, and coordination with local stakeholders, particularly as residents face uncertainty over outage schedules and restoration timelines.
Biazon criticized Maynilad’s handling of public advisories, saying the company failed to inform customers adequately and in a timely manner.
“Muntinlupeños are caught off-guard and are unable to prepare. The uncertainty of service restoration also causes undue stress, inconvenience, and lost productivity,” Biazon said, adding the disruptions have broader economic implications, underscoring the need for a more responsive and transparent service framework from the concessionaire.
The mayor further criticized Maynilad’s alleged lack of proactive engagement with local government, noting that public officials themselves have not been properly updated during disruptions.
“Government itself is not spared from this failure to communicate by Maynilad.
“We are also in the dark on what is going on, which necessitates us to have to initiative contact with Maynilad instead of Maynilad proactively engaging the local government,” Biazon said.
City officials have likewise raised concerns over Maynilad’s apparent inability to resolve the continuing water interruptions, despite the company’s operation of two water treatment plants along Laguna de Bay.
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