Duterte admin mulls creation of Department of Water

The Duterte administration has expressed openness to the idea of creating a Department of Water to address supply issues involving the resource.

The creation of a new department, which needs legislation, was brought up during the Cabinet’s discussion on Monday on mitigating the effects of El Niño and water shortage, according to presidential spokesperson Salvador Panelo on Tuesday.

“A roadmap was presented, which included immediate, medium and long-term interventions, such as making an intensive campaign for the conservation of water and energy, creating a Department of Water and a Department of Disaster Resilience, dredging of waterways, replacing tunnels and aqueducts, installing water tank systems in all Department of Health hospitals and providing funding for the establishment of water treatment plants,” he said.

Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Ernesto Pernia first broached the idea of creating a water department but Panelo said on March 18 there was no need for it since the water shortage in parts of Metro Manila and Rizal had already been addressed.

A bill seeking for the establishment of a Department of Water, Irrigation, Sewage and Sanitation Resource Management, which would, among other duties, "manage and protect the country's water resources” is pending in the Senate.

Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles, meanwhile, said the Executive department had prepared draft bills creating a water agency focused on economic and financial regulation and another responsible for policy formulation and resource regulation.

During the Cabinet meeting, National Economic and Development Authority Undersecretary Adoracion Navarro presented the proposed executive order on transforming and strengthening the National Water Resources Board (NWRB).

Panelo said the EO will merge the NWRB and the River Basin Control Office into the National Water Management Council (NWMC).

“This will streamline and consolidate planning and regulation of all water and river basins in the country. It will also draft a National Water Management Framework Plan,” he said.

Panelo also said President Rodrigo Duterte directed Solicitor General Jose Calida and Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra to study the arbitration case involving Metro Manila west zone water concessionaire Maynilad and the Philippine government.

Maynilad scored a victory in October 2018 at the High Court of Singapore over the P3.44-billion compensation it sought from the government for revenue losses as a result of the unimplemented water rate adjustment.

The water company said the decision became final after the government opted not to take the case to the Court of Appeal, the upper division of Singapore’s Supreme Court.

Panelo said the President also “instructed all agencies to check and review all contracts entered into and remove onerous provisions that might be detrimental to the lives of the Filipinos.”

Updates on the crafting of the implementing rules and regulations of the Rice Tariffication Law, filing of administrative charges against politicians accused of drug links and proposed creation of an Inter-Agency Task Force on Zero Hunger, which will be composed of 36 agencies, were also tackled during the Cabinet meeting. —KG, GMA News