Hinikayat ng mga senador noong Miyerkules ang pamahalaan na bumuo ng hiwalay na departamento para pangasiwaan ang water resources ng bansa matapos ang malawakang pagbaha sa Luzon bunsod ng Bagyong Ulysses.
Naghain sina Sen. Manny Pacquiao, chairman ng Senate committee on public works, at Sen. Imee Marcos ng mga panukalang batas na layong magtayo ng Department of Water Resources.
“Thirty-four plus ahensiya ang tumutugon sa tubig. It’s completely fragmented, confused and disorganized and very frequent it’s actually confrontational and contradictional,” paliwanag ni Marcos sa isang Senate committee hearing.
Unang sinabi naman ni Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon na walang badyet ang gobyerno para gumawa ng mga bagong ahensya habang hinikayat ang kapwa mambabatas na ipokus ang 2021 badyet sa paggastos para sa health at social sectors habang hindi pa natatapos ang pandemiya.
Aniya, “It will be a disaster because what we need are additional disaster or calamity funds, not additional bureaucracy. For every department you create you spend one and a half billion in terms of salary and MOOE (maintenance and other operating expenses) and you add to the bureaucracy.”
Samantala, isinusulong naman ni Sen. Francis Pangilinan ang paggawa ng isang water resource management council.
Layunin ng council na i-coordinate ang mga plano ng National Irrigation Administration (NIA), Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) na overseer ng flood control projects, Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS), at National Water Resources Board (NWRB), ayon sa dating NIA board chairman.
“Para magkakaroon ng paguusap tapos ‘yung pag-release ng tubig at least mayroong coordination ‘yung nagiisip ng flood control, irrigation, at potable water,” sabi ni Pangilinan.
Dagdag pa nito, “If they’re not talking to one another and there is no comprehensive approach eh ‘di kanya-kanya tayo tapos kanya-kanyang gastos.”
Hinikayat naman ni Marcos ang dam operators na inspeksyunin ang kani-kanilang mga pasilidad na kulang umano sa maintenance.
Aniya, “I know full well these dams have had no maintenance or repairs in the last few years. Walang budget ang NIA dyan. Ang NIA budget maliit na maliit kumpara sa dapat nilang gawin.”
“Many of the portions of Angat and Magat are filled with boulders…and unfortunately NIA doesn’t have the budget to restore them,” dagdag pa ng senadora.
