Tonight, I finished work at 5:30 PM and went downstairs at 5:45 PM. I was going to chop some apples to mix in with some tuna fish, but I had to wash my hands first. There was only one hitch. THERE WAS NO WATER!
I went next door and asked the neighbor if she had water, but hers was out, as well. She told me that it went out at 2:30. I then asked if anyone had called the water company and she just shrugs. *SIGH*
I went inside, grabbed the landline phone, and my most recent water bill and I sat down to call Maynilad. The first thing I did was dial the number on the water bill envelope. Of course, it just kept telling me that all circuits are busy. Usually, that just means that they are saturated with calls. So, just keep trying to call. Unfortunately, that proved fruitless and I changed tactics.
I grabbed my phone and jumped on Maynilad’s website. I quickly found a facility to check service advisories. Sometimes, they will post scheduled maintenance on their site. It wouldn’t shock me in the least if the water was out purposely and they just never bothered to notify us.
I typed in my CAN (Contract Account Number) and pressed SUBMIT. Well, to say that I had wasted my time would be an understatement. Not only was there no scheduled maintenance in my area, but there was nothing else of use to be found in the results.
So, on to Plan F. I went to the CONTACT US page and found a number for Cavite.
I dialed that and I got disconnected a few times, which is all too common in the Philippines. After a few tries, I finally got someone on the phone. Amazingly enough, she was actually quite helpful. She took my contact information, as well as, my CAN and gave me a ticket number. I think she called it a reference number, though. I am not sure.
Anyway, she informed me that it would be up to 24 hours before repairs would be effected. Now, this is no big deal. They will probably get it fixed before then.
It is the Mr. Scott (Star Trek) way of doing things. Give an inflated estimated time of repair and when you get it fixed early, you look good. I remember him saying that, to Geordi La Forge, on Season Six Episode Four (“Relics”) of Star Trek: The Next Generation.
(Unfortunately, this is only part of that scene. He actually says it right after where this cuts off. If you do not have Netflix, you can watch the full episode on Daily Motion. For that scene jump to time index 16:21. We are not affiliated with Daily Motion in any way.)
Anyway, I asked if anyone else had reported the problem and she told me that there were no other reports in the system for my area. So, that means that for three hours my moronic neighbors ran around the subdivision trying to get water from the well and nobody could be bothered to actually call the water company to report the outage. We could have gone days without water, because Maynilad would have no idea we had a problem and all because these dopes couldn’t be bothered to call.
This same thing happened, in February. when the subdivision lost water. I was the only one to call. The last two times we lost electricity, I was the only one to call Meralco. My roommate, who is from Boston, is the same way. If the power, water or internet goes out, he will bitch moan and complain, but he will not pick up the phone. When I ask him why not, he just says that it will do no good.
Let me tell you, this is completely false. Don’t get me wrong. My faith in the utility companies in this country is extremely low, but even I will admit that if you don’t call then definitely nothing gets done. At least if you call, there is a chance of it getting fixed.
Category: Filipino Logic and How They Think
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