Salamat appointed to MWSS board

FILE: Metropolitan Waterworks Sewerage System (MWSS) Building in Balara, Quezon City (Photo by Roel Balingit/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0)

President Rodrigo Duterte has appointed retired Lieutenant General Emmanuel Salamat as one of the members of the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) board of trustees.

Salamat, former chief of the Armed Forces of the Philippines-Northern Luzon Command (AFP-Nolcom), was appointed on July 29, as seen on the list of Presidential appointees released by Malacañang on Wednesday, July 31. Aside from Salamat, the President also reappointed Reynaldo Velasco on July 29 as MWSS board member.

It was in his speech in June when Duterte said he was eyeing to place Salamat at the MWSS. The agency has earned the ire of the Chief Executive following the water supply crisis experienced in parts of Metro Manila and Rizal earlier this year, which prompted the latter to issue a warning that he will fire MWSS officials if they fail to address the water shortage.

Reacting to Salamat’s appointment, Senator Grace Poe questioned the retired general’s capabilities to be part of the MWSS.

“Prerogratiba ng Pangulo, pero nais nating malaman kung meron bang karanasan si Salamat sa pamamalakad ng isang regulatory board, o ‘di kaya kompitensya sa mga hamon ng water distribution (It is the President’s prerogative but we want to know if Salamat has the experience in handling a regulatory board or if he is competent enough to face the challenges of water distribution),” she said.

“Hindi biro ang suliranin ng kawalang ng tubig. Hindi magtatagumpay ang walang kasanayan sa ganitong uri ng trabaho (The problem in water shortage is not a joke. One cannot succeed if he or she has no experience in this kind of work),” she added.

The document also showed that Duterte appointed former MWSS chairman Franklin Demonteverde as representative of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) to the  Judicial and Bar Council  (JBC), the body mandated by the Constitution to screen nominees and applicants for judicial posts.

Demonteverde, a retired judge, was appointed last July 19.