Water Monopoly Criticised

Farooq Mohamed Hassan, Deputy Director General of the Male’ Water and Sewerage Company and recently appointed Shadow Environment Minister, has exposed cartel pricing behaviour by the Male’ Water and Sewerage Company.

Speaking at a meeting of the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) on Friday, he claimed the company, which is now 76% owned by the government and has a monopoly on water supply in the Maldives, lowered prices during the 2003 Presidential elections campaign to benefit President Gayoom.

He said that as a result, the government agreed to pay an annual sum of Rf.10 000 000 (US$ 781 250) of tax payers’ money to cover the losses the company suffered.

He said that since then, the company has been pushing up the price of water to boost profits, meaning it had turned a profit by the fourth year of operations, instead of the fifth, as projected in the original plans.

He also criticised the company’s policy over water supply, metering and the chloride content of the water.

Farooq remains in the post of Deputy Director General but says he has been sidelined the company, which has ceased to consult him since he became a Shadow Minister.

“I am determined not to quit because if the ministers and deputy ministers can work in DRP I have an equal right to work in MDP,” he says.

A number of known MDP members who also work in government organisations have been subject to problems, ranging from general harassment to being fired for their involvement with the opposition.

Farooq is one of them, and is now calling for the company to honour its obligations under a joint venture agreement made when the company was founded.

Under the plans, the company should have provided water supply and a meter for every Maldivian household, rather than every house. In Male’, two or three families often live in one house due to the enormously high population density. But often, each household, defined as those who cook for themselves, does not have its own water supply.

Farooq is arguing that every household should now have a water supply and a meter, in order to take the onus off the government to provide public water taps where people can get water.

He has also complained about the company’s policy of charging Rf.30 per month as a rental fee for water meters. He says it violates the joint venture agreement and the company makes over Rf.450 000 every month from the charge, which is too much. Instead, he wants the company to charge for the meter up front.

He also argues that with less than 10% of water consumed used for drinking, the company should not spend so much money on producing water with low chloride content. He says that drives up prices when people are already paying for bottled water and do not need such high quality tap water.

Minivan News has tried on several occasions to contact staff from the MWSC to offer the company its right to reply. So far, our calls have gone unanswered and nobody has responded to our messages.