Customers kept in dark about water disruptions

Customers kept in dark about water disruptions

Urip Hudiono, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta

Water consumers in the city have long been complaining about a
perceived lack of effort on the part of the city water utilities
in preventing water supply disruptions, or at least in giving
prior warning of such disruptions.

"It would be very helpful if the water utilities would
directly send notices to customers, instead of just publishing
notices in the newspapers as many of us do not read the
newspapers," said Ketut Sumiarsa, a resident of Tanjung Duren,
West Jakarta, on Saturday.

She called on the water firms to also affix notices containing
information on planned repair work and supply disruptions in
local post offices, where most residents pay their water bills.

The notices should be delivered to the places affected at
least three days before the water was cut off, she said, so that
residents could prepare emergency supplies.

"They turned off the water once when I had visiting relatives
staying at my house. I had to buy water from vendors as there was
no water for days, and our complaints fell on deaf ears," Ketut
recalled.

Another Tanjung Duren resident, Ratnasari, expressed the hope
that the water utilities could come up with a way of ensuring
continuous water supplies to customers.

"Even a small trickle of water is actually enough for us," she
said. "Just don't turn of the water for days on end."

Ratnasari said she often found herself without water when a
stoppage in supply occurred, even though she normally tried to
maintain a reserve water supply in her home.

"What happens when the water goes off? We can't bathe, wash
nor cook," she said, adding that she was then forced to spend
money on buying water from vendors.

Suhardi, a resident of Kebon Jeruk, also in West Jakarta, said
that the water companies had to realize that they were supplying
a public necessity.

"They should make customer satisfaction their top priority. At
least, they should ensure that the customers get the water they
need every day," he said.

Suhardi said he was tired of complaining to his water utility,
and that the water supply to his home was still of poor quality
and frequently subject to disruptions.

PT PAM Lyonnaise Jaya (Palyja), one of city tap water operator
PD PAM Jaya's foreign partners, besides PT Thames PAM Jaya (TPJ),
had announced that water supplies would be disrupted in several
areas, including Tanjung Duren and Kebon Jeruk, over the weekend.
The disruption was due to maintenance work at the Cawang pumping
station in East Jakarta.

Palyja and TPJ supply water to customers in the west and east
of Jakarta respectively.