Muntinlupa told to pay P27-million power bill

MANILA, Philippines - Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) is asking the Muntinlupa City government to settle its P27 million electricity bill for its streetlights and “general power” consumption by the city government that accumulated since 1999.

In a letter, Clarito San Buenaventura, head of Meralco’s payments division, said that as of Nov. 22, the city government incurred P26,800,447.26.

“We need to be informed of your plan on clearing these obligations.

As these bills have already aged considerably, we urgently request to pay them within a definite time frame,” the letter addressed to Mayor Aldrin San Pedro read.

Meralco likewise warned San Pedro that if they fail to settle the financial obligation soon, it might be compelled to discontinue serving the city government without further notice.

San Pedro’s camp denied Meralco’s claim and argued that their outstanding bill is only more than P6 million only. Omar Acosta, head of the city’s public information office, said Meralco’s data is inaccurate.

“They did not bother to check with us or reconcile what is indicated in our records. Previous bills of the city government starting 1999 have already been settled. It is possible that payments were not updated or posted in their computer records,” Acosta said.

He noted that their outstanding balance refers only to their August to September bill of P2,667,879.45 and September to October bill of 3,778,696.80, or a total of P6,446,576.25.   – Rhodina Villanueva