MWSS resurgence: From whipping boy to reform poster boy

When President Benigno Aquino III took power a year ago, he aired the previous administration’s dirty linen, while promising that his presidency would distinguish itself by treading the straight and narrow path.

Discussing graft and corruption aimed at contrasting himself with former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, Mr. Aquino slammed bonuses that officials of the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) had awarded themselves in recent years.

According to the President, the MWSS board of trustees under the previous administration enjoyed bonuses equivalent to 30 months’ wages—all while the agency continued to fall short of meeting its pension obligations to retired employees.

This “extravagant” payroll totaled P211.5 million annually, with board members getting a total of P98,000 monthly or P14,000 each time they attended meetings, on top of an annual grocery allowance of P80,000.

MWSS officials also received mid-year bonuses, productivity bonuses, anniversary bonuses, yearend bonuses, financial assistance, Christmas bonuses and Christmas packages each worth P80,000 on top of the mandated Christmas bonus.

By most accounts, however, things have changed since then at the regulatory agency supervising the water resources of Metro Manila. And things are set to change even more as the Government-Owned and -Controlled Corporations (GOCC) Governance Act comes into force today (Friday).

“We will be putting in board members who are more functional,” MWSS Chair Ramon Alikpala told the Inquirer in an interview. “We have recommended to the Palace the appointment of strong finance people, lawyers and experts in the field of water resources.”

Vacancies in gov’t boards

Under the GOCC Law, all board positions of state corporations, except the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, will be considered vacant starting Friday, giving Malacañang the freedom to remove controversial “midnight appointees” of the previous administration.

Alikpala said the MWSS was spared from having to sue at least one official after the alleged recipient of one of the biggest benefits in the agency, Senior Deputy Administrator Macra Cruz, retired early this year.

Late last year, tax evasion complaints were filed in the justice department against board members Oscar Garcia and Ferdinand Mahusay, and former board member Lorenzo Sulaik following a Senate inquiry on the excessive salaries, bonuses and allowances in GOCCs and state financial institutions.

More importantly, however, the Inquirer learned that the agency was making headway in addressing the issues of excessive bonuses, housing inside the La Mesa Dam watershed and the nonpayment of benefits to MWSS retirees which Mr. Aquino highlighted last year.

“We expect the benefits to be paid by next month,” said one official who asked to remain anonymous because the plan was still being finalized.

The agency is also reexamining the MWSS charter to see whether the previous board had authority to grant its members extravagant bonuses, along with the rules governing the granting of housing privileges for auditors of the Commission on Audit and lawyers of the Office of the Government Corporate Counsel assigned to the agency.

Board meetings cut

In the previous administration, the MWSS board met as often as five times a month, resulting in greater costs since board members were remunerated on a per meeting basis.

Under Alikpala and MWSS administrator Gerry Esquivel, board meetings are now held once a month, similar to the frequency in private corporations.

“Will this [lower remuneration] discourage professionals from lobbying to sit on the MWSS board? Perhaps,” he said. “But if it is the intention of someone to gain wealth by joining the government, he or she should not even consider joining.”

Alikpala said the agency a year ago was “in shambles.”

“There was neither rhyme nor reason for the granting of a large number of the bonuses,” he said. “None of the bonuses were based on performance.”

Alikpala said the MWSS would be reoriented to focus on ensuring water security for Metro Manila and its environs.

“We are no longer in the business of distributing water as this is now being done by the two concessionaires, so the old system is now obsolete,” he added, describing what could be the most important change that is happening at the agency. “What is important for us now is to help guarantee the supply of water from a security perspective.”