DOJ: Gov’t to finish revised concession deals before December ends

The government is targeting to finish its version of the revised concession agreements with Manila Water and Maynilad before the end of December, according to Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra.

"Well, we intend to finish the revised draft, the Philippine government side, before the end of this month," Guevarra told reporters in a recent interview.

"When that is done, we will present it to the Cabinet meeting in early January. Kung okay na sa Cabinet, then that is the time that we could call the private concessionaires to a meeting. So we don’t know when exactly that meeting will be that’s got to be after the Cabinet meeting," the Justice chief said.

Early this month, the Department of Justice found “onerous" or "disadvantageous" provisions in the government’s 1997 concession agreements with Maynilad Manila Water.

These include a prohibition on government interference in rate-setting and a provision for indemnity in case of interference.

President Rodrigo Duterte has slammed the concessionaires in protest of the liability clause that holds the government liable if it interferes with the implementation of agreed water rates and accountable to indemnify the companies for losses incurred.

The Permanent Court of Arbitration in Singapore ordered the Philippine government to pay Maynilad around P3.6 billion and Manila Water P7.4 billion as compensation for losses or damages due to the liability clause, but companies decided not to pursue their respective arbitral wins after Duterte unleashed a series of tirades against them.

They will instead coordinate with the government to review the supposedly onerous terms in the concessions deals.

"Definitely... we would propose to remove 'yung mga provisions in the existing water concessionaires agreements that we believe are onerous and disadvantageous to the public," Guevarra said.

"So definitely 'yun tatanggalin. Now, kung meron kami ida-dagdag well that is subject matter of an on going study. Kung meron kami modifications, in others, like sa rate setting mechanism that has to be studied, corporate income tax na nakapaloob dun sa water charges those are things that we need to consider," he said.

Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III earlier said he told Manila Water and Maynilad to outline a new concession deal with the government, minus the disadvantageous items to avoid “long” and “drawn-out discussions.”

The concession agreements that have been extended to 2037 were canceled by the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS).

During a board meeting on December 5, the MWSS directors revoked a resolution drawn during the Arroyo administration approving the extension of the concession agreements. The resolution extended the concession agreement by another 15 years from 2022. — BM, GMA News