Our History

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The institution of water system in Oroquieta City can be traced back to the 1980’s when Misamis Occidental Water District (MOWD, now Metro Ozamiz Water District) extended its service to Oroquietanians in order to cater to the need for serviceable water. Over the years however, said service remained primitive and inefficient as evidenced by the complaints on the part of local water consumers. Longing for a better service, the first attempt to de-annex the Oroquieta Water System from its mother water district – the MOWD, was started in 1984. Unfortunately, the Local Water Utilities Administration (LWUA) did not approve this move by the Oroquieta City Council.

In 1988, Mayor Percival Catane also attempted to de-annex Oroquieta Water System from MOWD through his letter addressed to the Sangguniang Panlungsod of Oroquieta City in response to the unjustifiable increase in water rates, which was said to be inconsistent with their service which remained inefficient, unsatisfactory, and unreliable. Former Mayor Nancy Bandala also made a similar attempt in 2002 but the same proved futile even with the aid of an expensive consultancy firm in drafting position papers.

On February 25, 2009, the Sangguniang Panlungsod of Oroquieta City took a leap of faith passing Resolution No. 2009-02-163 requesting the conduct of a public hearing for the proposed de-annexation of Oroquieta City from MOWD, pursuant to Sec. 43 of PD 198, as amended. With a shocking turn of events, LWUA interposed no objection to the said public hearing which eventually happened on March 20, 2009. After complying with the required notice to all property owners within Oroquieta City, it was found out that indeed, the attending public is in favor of the proposed de-annexation. This public approval however, did not come without opposition from MOWD and from Mr. Ernesto T. Baz, then President of Oroquieta City Consumers Association, Inc. citing the following reasons, viz:

  1. Oroquieta Water System will be in deficit status should de-annexation be granted because the total expenses for operating, maintenance, and overhead of the water system far exceed the income from the water sales. The deficit is being covered through a subsidy generated from the income of the Ozamiz City area.
  2. Inevitable increase in water rates due to additional personnel and reduced water sales.
  3. Complications in monetary (loan) obligations.

Contrary to opposition claims, the Local Water Utilities Administration (LWUA) cited the following findings for the de-annexation:

  1. The de-annexation will benefit both parties. Having its own separate water systems, they will be able to manage their own system and can improve and expand to areas still not serviced by the present waterworks system while water supply development projects can be fully concentrated to the remaining, Ozamiz, Clarin, and Tudela, which operates inter-connectedly.
  2. Oroquieta City’s projected household service connection is about 11,667. Present service connection is only 4,580, which comprises 39% of total consumers, leaving 61% without water service. Once they manage their own water system, they can easily increase their service connection to say 9,000 or 78% in 3 to 5 years, ensuring the viability of the new Water District. On the other hand, MOWD’s reduction of 4,580 service connection representing Oroquieta consumers will be a positive factor for them since they will not be subsidizing the Oroquieta subsystem anymore.
  3. The de-annexation will once and for all end the long squabble between the two parties, namely MOWD and Oroquieta City LGU.
  4. Upon de-annexation of Oroquieta, it stands to benefit from the funding support promised by the City Government. The LGU has committed to provide financial assistance to Oroquieta City Water District (OCWD) per SP Resolution No. 2009-05-371.
  5. Oroquieta City can now proceed with its own improvement program and service the remaining 61% waterless consumers in the area.
  6. The never-ending media/political bombardment from the consumers of Oroquieta City regarding the poor water service of MOWD will stop. This has greatly affected the integrity of the MOWD.
  7. MOWD can now proceed with its expansion program without having to worry about the problems in Oroquieta City.

Hence, on May 26, 2009, the Board of Trustees of Local Water Utilities Administration passed Resolution No. 130 conferring the de-annexation of Oroquieta City from MOWD. On August 6, 2009, the passing of Resolution No. 2009-08-537 by the Sangguniang Panlungsod finally paved the way for the formal creation of Oroquieta City Water District (OCWD).

One of the consequences of the de-annexation was the transfer of loan obligations amounting to ₱85,000,000.00 incurred by Misamis Occidental Water District (MOWD) to the Local Water Utilities Administration (LWUA) in view of the assets in Oroquieta waterworks system. Infant as it is, OCWD is still building its financial viability therefore not prepared to keep up with the monthly amortization set forth by LWUA. Faced with financial challenges, the situation exacerbated due to corruption involving the disbursement of over 8 Million pesos without proper liquidation from August 2010 to March 2011.

Table 1. Net Income of OCWD (in Millions) wherein top-ranking officials were found guilty of Grave Misconduct as manifested in Docket No. OMB-M-A-11-334-H1 – Office of the Ombudsman.

With the exigency to pay the inherited loan to prevent it from further ballooning, suggestions to increase the water rates floated during Board of Directors and Management meetings. The management did not heed to such suggestion following a simple reasoning. They contended that OCWD needs to improve its services first, before the agency demands for higher fees to its consumers.

As the “turbulent years” of OCWD goes by, the agency weathered the storm. The challenge to resiliency became strong and the commitment to work became the number one priority of every employee. With the assumption of new sets of officers in 2013, OCWD was said to be thrusting towards a better organizational direction with the following objectives:

  1. Improve and sustain the provision of safe, affordable, and clean water.
  2. Ensure compliance to all policies and procedures within the agency including those set forth by the supervisory government offices.
  3. Promote and implement quality service standard and invest on innovative human resource development to meet consumers’ expectations.

Rebuilding OCWD was not an easy task. The new management was confronted with major setbacks such as but not limited to:

  1. No proper management turn‐over by the former general manager who did not come back to the office.
  2. OCWD was deluged with multiple suits.
  3. Voluminous number of Notices of Suspension and Disallowance for OCWD Board of Directors, Officers and personnel.
  4. High Non‐Revenue Water (NRW).
  5. No proper inventories of OCWD properties, supplies and equipment.
  6. No accounting system in place.
  7. Questionable financial cash flow due to uncontrollable disbursements.
  8. Disbursing officers and check signatories were not bonded and no proper implementation of government procurement act.
  9. Unpaid taxes of the employees; unpaid office electric bills.
  10. Disagreements among the OCWD employees and the Board of Directors;
  11. No cash in bank and in hand
  12. Unattended shared loan to LWUA;

Addressing the aforementioned setbacks, the following noticeable developments were observed, namely:

  1. Cases that were filed against the agency were all dismissed.
  2. OCWD is now compliant to all Implementing Rules and Regulations set forth by the Commission on Audit (COA), Department of Budget and Management (DBM), LWUA and other supervisory agencies. The management made sure that responsible persons indicated in the notice of suspensions/disallowances comply with the COA order.
  3. Formation of NRW team to repair and rehabilitate major leakages, conduct regular inspection to cease illegal connections, water pilferages and other illegal activities resulting to NRW reduction from 65% to 30%.
  4. Systematic recording of OCWD inventories – properties, supplies and equipment; and now relocation to a separate newly rented space for easy access and safe keeping.
  5. Installation of new LWUA-compliant billing and collection system to ensure accuracy and replace the old and obsolete system.
  6. All accountable officials and personnel were finally bonded; and the proper procedure for government procurement is now soundly implemented.
  7. The district is now religiously paying its monthly electric bill and the installation of VFD (Variable Frequency Device) in respective pumping stations has helped the agency save money due to minimal power consumption.
  8. The management also created a grievance machinery that will handle complaint/s launched by any aggrieved personnel in the agency. The Vision and Mission of OCWD has now put into realization, as it complies with the Citizens’ Charter and Transparency Seal as required by the CSC.

OCWD is, and will always be committed in providing effective and proactive service to the consuming public by ensuring a high level of operational performance so as to serve the public fairly, efficiently, safely, and reliably, while addressing the goals and future needs of the serviced area in the most economical, operational, and environmentally sound manner without jeopardizing commercial viability. These commitments cannot be realized without the stellar leadership, excellent financial management, and passion for public service of its dedicated personnel.

Indeed, OCWD has embarked in a new journey, a journey of hope, enlightenment and total transformation towards genuine development. Unselfishly providing service not just for a few but for all that it can be reached. There are still lots to reckon with, but the combined team effort to become responsive to change for the better, if not the BEST, shall open doors for more opportunities of growing, learning and discovering coupled with the authenticity of dedication and commitment to public service.

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