MWSS chief dismisses new graft case as harassment

MANILA, Philippines - Administrator Gerardo Esquivel of the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) has dismissed as harassment a new graft complaint filed against him before the Office of the Ombudsman for the alleged anomalous hiring and overpayment of 21 students of the University of the Philippines in Diliman.

“We really want to encourage students from top schools to join the government, to recognize that there is value and honor in public service,” he said.

Esquivel said the hiring of the students was done in support of the national government’s short-term employment programs, including the Special Program for Employment of Students (SPES) to provide short-term employment opportunities to poor but deserving students.

The Government Internship Program (GIP) introduces public service to students and young professionals to encourage them to pursue careers in government through internships in various government agencies, he added.

The MWSS Labor Association (MLA) had alleged that the student-interns were paid at the rate of 75 percent of the daily minimum wage instead of the 60 percent authorized under SPES.

Esquivel said he understands the unhappiness among MWSS employees, considering that the they used to enjoy at least 32 months in bonuses before his appointment in February 2011.

Last year, the MWSS removed the Cost of Living Allowance and Amelioration Allowance amounting to 50 percent of an employee’s basic pay when the Board of Trustees found no legal basis for it, and that COLA/AA was integrated into the employees’ standardized pay, he added.

Esquivel said any remaining benefits or allowances that the Commission on Audit (COA) may have observed are being carefully studied to ensure that the provisions of the General Appropriations Act on the minimum take-home pay of employees are not violated.

Bonuses are now limited to 13th month pay (one month basic salary), cash gift of P5,000, and such other performance-based bonuses that may be authorized by the Office of the President or by the Governance Commission for GOCCs (government-owned and controlled corporations), he added.

COA commends NWRB

The COA occasionally lauds government offices that perform well, and yesterday it commended the National Water Resources Board (NWRB) for its steadily increasing revenue for the past three years.

In 2012, the agency tasked by law to coordinate and regulate all activities related to water resources management in the country earned P83.12 million from fees from water resources development, appropriators and permit holders.

In 2010, NWRB’s total collection was only P70.46 million which increased to P80.70 million in 2011, the COA report said.

State auditors said the steady increase in NWRB’s revenue deserves praise, considering the agency’s limited manpower and resources, the non-payment of fees of water districts nationwide and non-increase of such fees.

“Records showed that during the year, the Board collected total revenues of P83,120,855.46 from the above mentioned fees from issuances of permits and annual water charges which were deposited directly  to the National Treasury pursuant to Section 3 of the General Provisions of RA No. 10155, the General Appropriations Act for FY 2012,” the COA report read.

“It is worth mentioning that although the rates of fees, charges and penalties have not increased and despite the limited number of personnel handling the billing functions coupled with limited funds for sending out statements of account to permittees, the collections of the Board continue to grow from CYs 2010 to 2012,” it added.

State auditors said an inquiry with the field engineers of the Monitoring and Enforcement Division disclosed that in addition to their regular monitoring activities, they also bring the Statement of Accounts in their fieldwork to remind the water permittees to pay their annual water charges.

“This contributed significantly to the increase in the collection of fees,” the COA report noted. “We commended the management for its efforts in increasing its revenues annually.”

–  With Michael Punongbayan