Cagayan de Oro City Water District Chairman of the Board Gerry Cańo (center) and Acting General Manager Edna Najeal (left) in a forum at SM Downtown mall, March 12, 2025. (COPC photo)
MindanaoToday.com | LWUA’S takeover far from over at COWD
By: Uriel Quilinguing
CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY, Philippines – There is no end in sight on the full intervention of the Local Water Utilities Administration (LWUA) on the management of the Cagayan de Oro City Water District (COWD), undermining the spirit of existing laws that promote local autonomy and good governance.
What was supposed to be a six-month take-over of COWD by an interim management starting on May 29, 2024, this was extended to three months, then to another six months starting March 1 until August 30, this year—unilateral LWUA actions the City Council described as “tantamount to abuse of authority.”
There was no consultation at all, even just out of courtesy, according to Gerry Cańo, chairman of the COWD regular Board of Directors (BOD), the five members of which are appointees of the local chief executive (LCE).
The appointing authority of City Mayor Rolando Uy, on who should compose the BOD, is stipulated in Presidential Decree No. 198, the Provincial Water Utilities Act of 1973, as well as under Republic Act No. 7160, otherwise known as the Local Government Code of 1991.
“They came and took over (COWD) like a thief of the night,” Cańo said in a “Meet the Press” forum of the Cagayan de Oro Press Club (COPC) on Wednesday, March 12, this year, in the presence of former COWD BOD Chairman Eduardo Montalvan and retired COWD Manager Bienvenido Batar Jr.
The COWD BOD chairman questioned the third extension of six months that LWUA granted to the interim general manager (IGM) and the interim BOD (IBOD) even when the Commission on Audit (COA) has flagged some P253-million disbursements from June to November last year, including about P400 thousand on consultancy fees.
The Civil Service Commission (CSC), he said, has asked the interim management to explain the hiring of over 300 casual employees and several consultants.
CSC Regional Office 10 has not confirmed their recruitment to COWD, a government-owned and controlled corporation, he further disclosed.
NON-REVENUE WATER
Meanwhile, Acting General Manager Edna Najeal, who was appointed on March 3, this year, by the regular COWD BOD said the non-revenue water (NRW) has been on a 49-percent month-on-month average prior to the assumption of the LWUA-handpicked IGM and IBOD more than eight months ago.
The relatively high NRW which reached as high as 59 percent about a decade ago was one reason for LWUA full intervention mid-last year. The other is the contentious contract between the COWD and the Cagayan de Oro Bulkwater Inc. (COBI), particularly on rate adjustments.
In a “Meet the Press” forum on February 26, this year, IGM Fermin Jarales disclosed that the NRW of the COWD was 52 percent and that they expect this to be about 35 percent after five years, once the five-year COWD Development Plan (CDP) they formulated would be implemented.
Jarales said technical experts acting as consultants were hired in the formulation and the CDP which has a budgetary requirement of P6.7 billion was completed and adopted in September last year. He claimed the COWD does not have a development plan.
But Najeal, in the March 12 “Meet the Press” forum, said the implementation of COWD NRW second-phase projects, funded out of its P453-million loan from the Development Bank of the Philippines, were stalled when the interim management came.
“Some planned projects were put on hold because of the (LWUA) intervention,” said the AGM who, for years, has been COWD assistant general manager for operations.
The COWD NRW reduction program was based on a study that was jointly conducted by the United States Agency for International Development and Japan International Cooperation Agency (USAID-JICA).
COUNCIL RESOLUTION
On March 3, this year, the City Council, in its regular session, passed Resolution No. 15275-2025 which condemned LWUA’s decision to extend their takeover of the COWD until August 30, this year.
The Resolution states that the takeover “instigates confusion and controversy” because the LWUA action undermines the authority of local chief executive to appoint the five members of the COWD BOD. It is “tantamount to abuse of authority.”
From the time the IGM and IBOD took over, the five members COWD BOD including its chairman were “set aside” and have not been consulted on COWD management and operations. Even COWD general manager Antonio Young was also “set aside” and subsequently retired.
Since March 3, this year, the COWD has two general managers; Jarales, the interim GM, and Najeal, the acting GM.
Copies of the Resolution, which was signed by 12 of the 19 members of the City Council, were sent to Chairman Ronnie Ong of the LWUA Board of Trustees (BOT) and LWUA Administrator Moises Salonga.
Julius Paolo Basa, LWUA corporate board secretary, certified on February 25, this year, LWUA Resolution No. 19, series of 2025, which further extended the intervention on COWD, upon the recommendation of the IGM and IBOD.
But the Resolution also stated that the authorized six-month extension is without prejudice to the LWUA BOT’s authority and discretion to revoke or shorten the extension should public interest warrant, or as may be required by law, or rules and regulations.
LWUA also reserves the right to withdraw the approval in case if it is discovered that there is material misrepresentation of facts that led to the decision to extend the full intervention, and/or violation of pertinent laws, including applicable implementing guidelines, rules and regulations. (Uriel Quilinguing/MT)
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