Good service first, then raise rate: Customers

Good service first, then raise rate: Customers

The city administration recently proposed an increase of tap
water rates by 30 percent starting on Jan. 1, 2004. However, the
hike does not mean a better service as 17 percent of the hike
will be used to pay the huge debts of the city-run tap water
operator PD PAM Jaya to its foreign partners and the central
government. The Jakarta Post talked to some people about the
increase.

Nafiqur Rochman, 30, an employee of a private company in West
Jakarta. He lives in Cempaka Putih, Central Jakarta with his wife
and two children:

The plan to increase tap water rates must be canceled. The
previous increase did not bring any improvements at all.

There must be one day in a week that I have to use ground
water because the connection is said to be disrupted for five to
12 hours. That's really annoying.

Heru, 33, a staffer with a Jakarta-based magazine. He lives in
Rawamangun, East Jakarta, with his parents, wife and a son:

The water operators have to improve service to customers
before proposing an increase. Consumers in this neighborhood have
complained a lot about the low quality of the tap water and the
frequent disruption. Moreover, we always get our bills late and,
therefore, we have to pay the fines.

I know that water operators have been suffering from constant
loss due to water leakage and water theft. But good service has
to come first.

Edy, 29, a member of a non-governmental organization whose
office in Central Jakarta uses the tap water operator service:

I think a 30 percent increase will be a big burden for us. The
water bill is about Rp 100,000 (US$11.77) a month on average. The
increase means another Rp 30,000, and that is too much for an NGO
like us.

I can accept an increase if it is lower than 30 percent, let's
say five percent every three months, but it must be followed by
the improvement in the service.

I think the privatization of water operators worsened their
performance because the water rate keeps on rising while the
service stays poor like before.

-- The Jakarta Post