MCWD Board appointments: Gwen's claim of authority referred to legal division

The Board of Directors of the Metropolitan Cebu Water District has formally referred to its legal division the letter of Governor Gwendolyn Garcia claiming her authority to appoint the replacement of two members whose terms of office would expire on December 31.

MCWD Board chairman Juan Saul Montecillo in the weekly 888 News Forum at the Parklane Hotel yesterday said that the Board cannot act on it unless it is brought to court by a proper party.

Montecillo cited the case for declaratory relief the MCWD filed during the term of former governor Pablo Garcia on the same issue that was dismissed by the Court for reason that MCWD is not the party to question as to who has the authority to appoint members of the Board.

Garcia, in a letter dated October 16, directed MCWD corporate secretary Cynthia Barrit to submit to her not later than November 15 the names of the nominees for appointments to the said positions.

Montecillo is hoping that they could respond to the governor by November 7 after their legal division could give proper advice.

Garcia, in her letter, cited section 3(b) of Presidential Decree No. 198, otherwise known as the Provincial Water Utilities Act of 1973, which governs the operation of MCWD.

The law on "the person empowered to appoint the members of the Board of Directors of a local water district, depending upon the geographic coverage and population make-up of the particular district" provides that "in the event that more than seventy-five percent of the total active water service connections of a local water district is within the boundary of a city, the appointing authority shall be the mayor of the city or municipality, as the case may be, otherwise the appointing authority shall be the governor of the province within which the district is located."

The records of MCWD, however, based on the letter of Armando Paredes, MCWD general manager, addressed to Mandaue City Mayor Thadeo Ouano, dated September 27, and its attached record of MCWD service connections, clearly showed that as of August 26 the water service connections of MCWD within Cebu City is now below 75 percent of its total service connections, being only 63.06 percent based on actual service connections and 61.28 percent based on the number of households in a subdivision or condominium (which are bulk metered) and communal faucets which are considered as one service connections.

Pursuant to the said provision of PD 198, Garcia claimed as the empowered and authorized person to appoint the members of the Board of Directors of the MCWD.

Garcia warned that any appointment then for the said positions in violation thereof would be illegal, therefore null and void. - Gregg M. Rubio