Bad experience with Maynilad-Parañaque Branch

I take the liberty to write your newspaper so that I may bring attention to my experience with the Maynilad utility company.

About a decade ago, Maynilad installed a line from the water meter to the tap of my home. But water has yet to become available. They did provide free water rationing, but on a few occasions, sometime in 2002 and 2003. The schedule was very irregular, if schedule is even the right word for it. Moreover, the rationed water was supposed to be free, as Ms. Susan Borja of the Maynilad office in Sucat, Parańaque, verified to me when I visited this office last October. But still, I was given a monthly billing with penalty charges at that, which Maynilad could not explain. I paid those bills whether or not there was service, and the Maynilad office itself confirmed to me that they have no record of any unpaid bills in my name.

Recently, I tried to avail myself of their service again, but Maynilad now says my service line had been disconnected and I need to pay a “reactivation fee.” But what was there to be disconnected—and without any disconnection notice at all to the client? Why the reactivation fee when nothing was ever activated?

Despite my having paid all the fees—and Maynilad was already billing me 26 days before it installed the line to my tap—there has been no water from the tap in all this time. I have repeatedly emphasized the absurdity of this situation to the area specialists I talked with at the Maynilad office, but to no avail. My line cannot be disconnected for non-service by Maynilad for which I have paid the bills, and I cannot be charged with a reactivation fee when nothing was ever activated and nothing was disconnected.

In my desperation over this matter, I thought it best to write your newspaper. Kindly consider this letter for publication. Thank you very much. Lorna S. Torre, Parañaque City