Excavation permits: MCWD execs hopeful these will be approved

Water district's officials are optimistic with acting Mayor Garcia at Cebu City's helm

A photo of MCWD Chairman Joey Daluz III with General Manager Edgar Donoso during a press conference on Tuesday, May 14. CDN Digital photo | Niña Mae Oliverio

CEBU CITY, Philippines — As they expressed their confidence under the acting mayor’s “leadership”, they also look forward that their projects to address the water crisis will be realized anytime soon.

The Metropolitan Cebu Water District (MCWD) on Tuesday, said that they were hopeful that Acting Mayor Raymond Alvin Garcia would finally sign the pending excavation permits.

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Once signed, the water district would be able to extend their services in the upland barangays in Cebu City, said Edgar Donoso, MCWD’s general manager.

“For 50 years wala gyud silay na-tubig from MCWD. This time, kung mapirmahan na, naay construction period. After that, ready na man atong supply didto. Siguro akong tan-aw at least six months ang construction period,” Donoso said in a press conference on Tuesday.

(For 50 years, they have no water from MCWD. This time, if these will be signed, then there will be a construction period. After that, our supply there is already ready. I think the way I see it, the construction period will take 6 months.)

Donoso said that before, the Technical Infrastructure Committee (TIC) was the sole body who would approve the permits, until later, it had changed to include the signatory of the City Administrator’s Office which was under the helm of suspended City Administrator Collin Rosell.

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“This time, mo-submit naka sa TIC, na approve na, moadto pa man sa Administrator. Moadto pama’g bisag asa. Di nami ka monitor kung asa gyud na padung actually,” Donoso said.

(This time, you have to submit to the TIC, then when this gets approved you still have to go to the administrator. You have to go somewhere. We can no longer monitor where it will go actually.)

As of Tuesday, only one out of six excavation permits was signed by Rosell.

The excavation permits were for the barangays Agsungot, Cambinocot, Budlaan, Binaliw, Guba, and Pulangbato, among others.

“This was a promise to them from us, paghimo nato’s Lusaran nga sila gyuy unang makatubig kay moagi. Sila na nuoy nauwahi,” MCWD Chairman Joey Daluz III said.

(This was a promise to them from us, when we did Lusaran that they will be the first to get water because it will pass there, now they are the last.)

The MCWD officials reported on Tuesday that the water district’s water production was 241,000 cubic meters per day (CMD), lower than the normal production capability which was 301,000 CMD.

Daluz contributed the production deficit to the decreased production of surface water from Jaclupan, Buhisan, Lusaran, and Compostela bulk water supply due to El Niño.

The production in Jaclupan dam has reduced to 6,000 CMD from 30,000; while the Lusaran dam has reduced to 8,000 CMD. The Buhisan dam also reduced to 2,000 CMD from 6,000 CMD.

However, the Compostela dam recorded zero CMD from 10,000 CMD.

The officials said that the water district would be delivering water daily using eight water tankers to the areas with intermittent water supply.

Meanwhile, the MCWD also hoped that their desalination facility in Mandaue City which is expected to produce 5,000 to 10,000 CMD would start its operations on May 17, Friday.

Last Monday, Garcia said that he would be willing to sit down with the MCWD officials to discuss matters that would address the water crisis.

After learning this, the MCWD BOD expressed their “one hundred percent” confidence with Garcia’s leadership.

“I am very confident with the leadership of Mayor Raymond Garcia nga mututok gyud siya aning atong problema diha. I’m very confident and happy nga Mayor Raymond is now focused on MCWD,” Daluz told CDN Digital on Monday.

(I am very confident with the leadership of Mayor Raymond Garcia that he would focus on our problems there. I’m very confident and happy that Mayor Raymond is now focused on MCWD.)