MCWD Chair Atty. Jose Daluz III
CEBU CITY, Philippines – The status quo remains at the Metropolitan Cebu Water District (MCWD) as of Friday, June 2, 2023.
The position of MCWD chairman was not declared vacant and no election took place to alter the membership of the MCWD board.
In an interview with Minerva Gerodias, MCWD spokesperson, a few hours after the MCWD board session on Friday, Gerodias said that the MCWD board, chaired by lawyer Jose Daluz III, decided to defer action on the request of Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama for legal formalities relative to the installation of Engr. Miguelito Pato as new board chairman.
READ: Cebu City gov’t: Pato is new MCWD chairman
Gerodias said that the board maintained that installing a new chairman right now would be “moot and academic” since three of the current board members, Daluz, Pato, and Judelyn May Seno, are respondents of a show cause order sent by the city hall demanding an explanation on why they should not be removed as chairman and members of the board.
The show cause pertains to the petition filed by the MCWD employees’ union demanding the removal of Daluz as chairman and Pato and Seno as board members.
Jerone Castillo of the City Legal Office, earlier, told reporters that the city government only acted on behalf of the MCWD union, after they lodged a complaint before the Office of the Ombudsman-Visayas in September 2022 seeking Daluz’s removal as chairman because of his alleged poor performance.
Gerodias said the three board members received the order to provide an explanation on May 22, and the city hall received their written response on May 26.
Only Daluz was able to sign the written response because Pato and Seno were on official travel during that time.
As of now, Gerodias said, the MCWD is still awaiting the action of the city hall on the reply of the three board members.
“Para sa board ganiha, naa naman siya’y supervening event…If Mayor Rama will remove the three of them, ang pag install nato og new chairman in the person of Engr. Pato mahug siya og moot and academic because Engr. Pato is one of the three nga gipa explain why they should not be removed,” Gerodias said.
CDN Digital tried to get comments from City Administrator and lawyer Collin Rosell and lawyer Jerone Castillo who was the City Legal Office head during the time the show cause was filed, but received no response as of press time.
Daluz earlier maintained that the appointment of the board’s chairman rests exclusively on the authority of the members of the MCWD board. /rcg
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