Palace mum on allegations vs NIA chief

MANILA, Philippines - Malacañang yesterday declined to comment on allegations against sacked National Irrigation Administration (NIA) chief Antonio Nangel, saying instead due process must be followed.

Asked about reports that Nangel and his wife were jetsetters and that he and the NIA regional directors spent huge funds on renovations rather than irrigation, deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said: “We are not in a position to comment as those are personal allegations against former administrator Nangel and his wife.”

A NIA administrator receives the following compensation: monthly basic salary of P78,946 or P947,352 annually and P369,000 fixed expenses and other allowances. The basic monthly is authorized under Joint Resolution No. 4 of Congress on the Salary Standardization Law.

“As for the allegation regarding renovations vis-a-vis irrigation, that will fall under the auditing purview of the Commission on Audit,” Valte said.

At press time, Valte could not confirm if President Aquino had indeed asked Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala to scout for a replacement for Nangel, who got the boot for failing to meet targets despite full disbursement of funds by the Department of Budget and Management to the agency.

The President had ordered an investigation into the use of NIA funds to ensure they were spent properly up to the last centavo. 

There were reports that Malacañang was not renewing the appointment of Nangel, whose term ended last June 30, after the agency failed to meet its targets for the past years.

Meanwhile, Senators Cynthia Villa and Ferdinand Marcos Jr. have filed separate bills to improve the national irrigation program of the government to counter the impact of climate change, particularly in the agricultural sector.

Villar filed Senate Bill No. 34 to accelerate the irrigation program nationwide while Marcos filed Senate Bill No. 14 that gives NIA the mandate to implement and expedite a massive national irrigation program, with the goal of providing water to 95 percent of farmlands nationwide.

“The bill proposes to accelerate irrigation development in the country in order to address the agricultural needs of our countrymen. It mandates the NIA to come up with programs and plans of action to achieve this goal,” Marcos said.

The bill also directs NIA to provide technical and financial assistance to local government units, cooperatives, farmers’ associations, as well as non-government organizations with respect to irrigation systems in their respective jurisdictions.

Villar said her bill would mandate the NIA to undertake a six-year accelerated irrigation plan to cover unirrigated and unproductive land.

NIA shall conduct consultations with local planning and development councils, irrigators’ associations, farmers, indigenous people, and concerned government agencies to identify priority areas.

Despite the criticism against Nangel, NIA employees reportedly dubbed him as the best administrator of the agency. 

NIA sources said Nangel was one of the most hardworking administrators who visited various provinces and implemented several programs and projects that changed the face of NIA and the lives of farmers.

“President Aquino may have a different perspective of administrator Nangel but he must be looking elsewhere. He does not know him personally. He just relied on some informants,” the source said.

Nangel is a Novo Ecijano who worked his way up the ladder. He became operations manager of the Upper Pampanga River Integrated Irrigation Systems (UPRIIS), the country’s largest national irrigation system that runs the Pantabangan Dam. – With Christina Mendez, Manny Galvez