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Sentul City to cut off our tap water supply: Residents
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Sentul City residents stage a protest in front of water operator PDAM Tirta Kahuripan in Bogor, West Java on Dec. 21, 2017. They claimed that Sentul City's housing management had threatened to cut off the water supply to their houses until they paid their water bills. (Tempo/Fahadz)
H
undreds of residents of Sentul City residential compound in Bogor, West Java, claimed that the residential management had threatened to cut off the water supply to their houses until they paid their water bills.
The residents, grouped under the Sentul City Residents Committee (KWSC), said Sentul City's management had promised its customers to provide clean tap water because it claimed to have its own water treatment facility.
“[…] while apparently they were only distributing water from PDAM Tirta Kahuripan [in Bogor regency]. They buy it at a reduced rate and sell it to the customers at a much higher price,” KWSC secretary Deni Erliana said on Tuesday, tempo.co reports.
Deni went on to explain that Sentul City sold the water to the residents at Rp 9,200 (64 US cents) per cubic meter, while PDAM had its own rate for luxurious residency, which was set at Rp 4,900 per cubic meter.
“The company knows that water is part of our basic needs hence they can easily threaten to cut of our water,” he added.
The residents had reported the matter to the National Commission on Human Rights and the Public Works and Housing Ministry.
“Although our houses look luxurious, many of us are middle-class people [who wouldn’t be able to afford water that expensive],” Deni said.
PT Sentul City Tbk spokesperson Alfian Mujani, however, said the company had conducted its business according to the Law No. 4/1992 on housing and residency to ensure it can provide the best facilities to its customers.
“We have met all the administrative requirements to conduct our own water treatment because PDAM can’t cover all of the residents’ water needs,” Alfian said. (vla)
