Residents, YLKI oppose water rate hike

Residents, YLKI oppose water rate hike

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Immediately after moving into a 400-square-meter house in Karet
Kuningan, South Jakarta, in 2003, Sugeng applied for a tap water
connection with city water company PAM Jaya.

She hoped the connection would ensure a daily supply of clean
water for her family of five.

Sugeng, however, told The Jakarta Post on Saturday that she
was extremely disappointed with the company's service.

"Last month, the tap water stopped flowing for three days. No
official came to explain why. I could not just wait so I decided
to hire someone to dig a well, bought a water pump and a water
sanitizer," said Sugeng, adding that the work cost her more than
Rp 2 million.

Dapot Rolan Simandjutak in Cilincing, North Jakarta, had an
even worse experience.

The tap water stopped running to his 100-square-meter house
for a week, forcing him to buy sanitized water from a vendor.
Every day during the week, he spent Rp 700 for every 10 liters of
water from the vendor.

The following month Simandjutak received a bill from PAM Jaya
for Rp 100,000, far more than the Rp 30,000 to Rp 50,000 he
usually paid each month.

"I went to PAM Jaya's office to protest. I told them I usually
paid between Rp 30,000 and Rp 50,000 a month. They said one of
their employees had made a mistake in reading the meter,"
Simandjuntak told the Post on Saturday.

Despite the inferior service, the city administration raised
the water rate for poor households on Friday from Rp 550 per
meter cubic to Rp 900, an increase of 63 percent.

While the water rate was raised 63 percent for low-income
households, middle and upper-income residents and commercial
enterprises will only be required to pay between 6 percent and 17
percent more for their water.

The lowest rate increase went to special zones, including
Tanjung Priok Port, where the rate went up only 5 percent.

The hikes were part of a memorandum of understanding signed by
the Jakarta administration and private tap water companies PT
Thames PAM Jaya and PT Lyonnaise Jaya (Palyja) on the repayment
of the city's debts of Rp 600 billion to the companies.

Water rates were also raised last February by between 4
percent and 16 percent, effective as of January 2005.

Palyja, a subsidiary of France's ONDEO (formerly Lyonaisse des
Eaux) serves customers in western Jakarta, while TPJ, a
subsidiary of Britain's Thames Water International, supplies tap
water to customers in eastern Jakarta.

Both Sugeng and Simandjutak were unhappy with the increases
but told the Post they could do nothing about it.

"I accept the decision, but only if the water keeps running to
my house. If it does not I will cancel my PAM connection and buy
water from next door," Simandjuntak said.

Indah Suksmaningsih, chairwoman of the Indonesian Consumers
Foundation (YLKI), denounced the increases and demanded the
Jakarta administration review its cooperation with its private
partners, PT Thames PAM Jaya, and PT Lyonnaise Jaya.

"Rather than increasing rates, the Jakarta administration
should review its cooperation with its private partners because
they have not shown any significant improvement in providing good
service," the YLKI chairwoman said.

Indah said she had received reports that many PAM customers in
West and North Jakarta were not receiving water despite having
tap water connections.

"About 11 percent of the total number of customers have not
received water. But they still pay a monthly service charge,"
said Indah.

Indah said the administration must review its cooperation
agreement with the two private companies because many of the
targets contained in the agreement had not been achieved.

"The administration should review the cooperation. If it
brings more losses than profit, cancel it," she said. (006)