MWSS exec who discovered anomalies finally leaves post

MANILA, Philippines - The administrator of the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage Systems (MWSS), who claimed to have discovered several anomalies in the water agency, left his post on Tuesday, months after he refused to pay a contractor for a project deemed "overpriced." Lorenzo H. Jamora, outgoing MWSS administrator, denied reports he was unwilling to leave office despite an order issued by President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. In a telephone interview with GMANews.TV, Jamora said he was simply "waiting for his replacement" because abandoning his post would constitute "dereliction of duty." "I already filed my clearance after I was informed by Malacañang that I was relieved from my position," Jamora said, hours after 20 or so MWSS employees gathered outside the agency's office Tuesday to demand for his exit. Jamora said when he went to Malacañang last week, he was informed that his term as MWSS Administrator was over. The order was signed March 18 by President Arroyo. Jamora's replacement, lawyer Diosdado Allado, was sworn in by Public Works Secretary Hermogenes E. Ebdane Jr. last Friday after his appointment papers were signed by President Arroyo two days earlier. "I was informed that I would be able to perform better in Malacañang to oversee the water programs of the President," Jamora said. "But I have yet to see my appointment papers." Anomalies Jamora claimed that a number of MWSS officials and employees were eager to see him go—as shown by the rally held at the MWSS entrance—because he uncovered several anomalies. However, he refused to say whether his exit from the water agency was related to his discovery of these irregularities. Three months after he was appointed in January last year, Jamora discovered that a project which would store and treat household waste from various cities in Metro Manila was "overpriced." To be constructed in Antipolo, Rizal, the Asian Development Bank-funded Septage Treatment Plant would be able to process some 600 cubic meters of septic tank waste a day and would cost some P608.28 million, as indicated by various documents shown to GMANews.TV. A similar facility built by Manila Water Co. Inc. (MWCI) only cost P305.89 million. Financed by a World Bank loan, the San Mateo, Rizal, plant also has the capability to process 600 cubic meters of household waste a day. MWSS documents shown to GMANews.TV revealed that the contractor for the "overpriced" project was Salcon PTE Ltd., defeating three other bidders including Pumyang Construction Co. Ltd., TOA Corp., and a joint venture between Black & Veatch Intl. Co. and F. F. Cruz. Among those who signed and awarded the project to the winning bidder were members of the MWSS's Bids and Awards Committee that included then MWSS Administrator Orlando C. Hondrade, Senior Deputy Administrator Macra A. Cruz, and Board of Trustees members Amaury R. Gutierrez, Alfredo C. Reyes, Ma. Teresa S. Habitan, Jay C. De Castro, Andoni T. Dumlao, and Lorenzo S. Sulaik. In a text message, Jamora said he refused to pay the contractor "when the company started sending its billings." He failed to indicate a date when he disapproved payment, saying he has already forgotten it. Fired In September 2007, the Philippine News Agency, citing a recommendation from the Presidential Anti-Graft Commission, said that Jamora, then chairman of the Local Water Utilities Administration, was "fired for allegedly authorizing irregular and unnecessary contracts worth P1.4 million in connection with the construction of the LWUA training center." "The training center was constructed without any approved budget or prior approval by the Japan Bank for International Cooperation, which funded the project," the report said. Meanwhile, the same report also indicated that Honrade "was found guilty of grave misconduct, conduct grossly prejudicial to the best interest of the service," among others, for advancing "P1.5 billion to the contractors as cost of the rehabilitation of the Umiray-Angat Transabangan Project (UATP) without complying with law requirements." Honrade was reported to have "rented private helicopters without undergoing public bidding and failed to furnish COA with documents supporting these expenses." - GMANews.TV