“Shape up or ship out!”
President Duterte has threatened to fire Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System officials and terminate the contracts with two water concessionaires amid his outrage over their alleged failure to prevent the recent water supply interruption in Metro Manila.
The President met officials of the MWSS, Manila Water, and Maynilad in Malacañang Tuesday and ordered them to submit a report on the water shortage before April 7 so he can decide on their fate, according to presidential spokesman Salvador Panelo.
The closed-door meeting, in which Duterte vented his anger at the concerned water officials for their supposed failure to perform their job, lasted for 40 minutes.
“The President told them they could have simply anticipated such shortage and could have done something about it. They had to wait for him to threaten them with personally rushing to Manila from Davao to grapple with the crisis before they moved to end it. The Chief Executive bluntly told them to ‘shape up or ship out!’” Panelo said yesterday.
“In a stern message delivered without even once looking at the officials, the obviously outraged President threatened to fire the MWSS officials and terminate the concessionaires’ contracts,” he said.
Panelo said in the meeting, Duterte told the officials he would not listen to their explanation about the water shortage since it would be “just plain excuses.”
“They simply did not do their job. ‘All they care about is get profit from the water of the people’ and to their sufferance as well,’” Panelo said, recalling the President’s pronouncement.
The President said the officials knew of the problem leading to the stoppage of the flow of water but did not resolve to prevent it, according to Panelo. “The President expressed his evident displeasure by saying that he hoped that at the end of the day the water crisis was not just a matter of common sense,” he added.
Duterte also told the water officials that he was ready to take “swift and drastic” steps to protect the people. “The President reiterated that he is constitutionally tasked to serve and protect the citizenry, and he will not equivocate to take swift and drastic actions to secure the people from discomfort and shield them from suffering, regardless of the dire consequences to the players of the water industry,” Panelo said.
“The meeting which was more of a presidential monologue lasting for about 40 minutes abruptly ended by the President ordering the officials to submit a report on the water shortage before April 7, after which he will decide whether heads will roll or whether the contracts of the concessionaires will be terminated,” he added.
MWSS Administrator Reynaldo Velasco is prepared to resign if he could not comply with Duterte’s order to resolve the water shortage in Metro Manila.
A day after Duterte berated MWSS, Maynilad, and Manila Water officials over the water supply problem, Velasco has pledged to craft a 50-year comprehensive roadmap to help ensure water security. “Kakayanin natin ‘yan. If I cannot do it, I will resign immediately,” Velasco said.
“We are not worried about the water supply until 2037 which is the end of the concession agreement but we have to go beyond that because ang utos ng Presidente, and even the Senate were asking na gumawa ng masterplan diyan, so we will do the roadmap maybe up to 50 years,” he said.
For now, Velasco admitted that no one in the MWSS board has offered to resign because the President has not asked for it during the meeting in Malacañang. He said the President instead gave them time to fix the problem or else risk losing their jobs.
“Kasi ang sinabi lang niya shape up or ship out. In other words, ayusin ninyo muna. Kapag hindi ninyo maayos, go. Pinagbibigyan naman kami na ayusin kaya inaayos ko para hindi ako tanggalin,” he said.
Velasco admitted though he was willing to step down if Duterte asked for it, saying all presidential appointees serve at the pleasure of the President.
“All of us in the board are under the pleasure of the President. We are presidential appointees. Anytime he feels like we can’t do it, and others can take our place, that’s welcome,” he said. “If he asked for it, I will volunteer. I will take responsibility and spare the board. But since he did not ask for it, I am still here,” he added. (Genalyn Kabiling)
