Adequate safe water: Fuel to peace and progress in Bongao, Tawi-Tawi

The mere mention of Tawi-Tawi conjures in the minds of many Filipinos an image of a faraway, seabound province largely wallowing in poverty and crawling with all sorts of lawless elements from cut-throat pirates and bandits to rebels of various causes and persuasions.

The image is of course inaccurate and unfair as the common public perception of any province and community in the South which have been the scenes of intermittent clashes between the military and separatist rebels since the 70s , and lately the government forces and the dreaded Abu Sayaff bandit group.

For by and large, the people, local government and other sectors of the province have been taking every effort and persevering to attain their long desired peace, stability and development. Significantly, the national government through its various instrumentalities has been providing the much-needed impetus and support towards the realization of such ideal.

Take for instance the strides attained in the development of water supply system of this capital town which forty years ago, according to former OIC governor now Agrarian Reform Assistant Secretary Lorenzo R. Reyes, " had only an artesian well supplemented by murky water from Malassa sold by the enterprising Suddeng family." The water situation was so bad, said Reyes reminiscing his boyhood days, that "children went to school without taking a bath."

Today, Bongao boasts of a modern water supply system consisting of seven pumping stations, six reservoirs and water tanks, kilometers-long network of transmission, distribution and service pipelines that deliver adequate and safe potable water to more than 18,000 residents or roughly a third of the town's population.

And just recently, through the combined efforts of the Bongao Water District (BWD), the Local Water Utilities Administration (LWUA) and the local officials of the town led by former governor now congressman Nur G. Jaafar and incumbent governor Rashidin H. Matba, a mini water treatment plant was added to the water supply system facilities. The mini treatment plant was intended to reduce turbidity and iron content in the water supply from its sources in Sanga-Sanga.

The transformation of the Bongao water system begun with the establishment in 1987 of the Bongao Water District (BWD) which not only took over the ownership, mangement and operation of the local water system but also becomes the conduit of combined national and local government assistance in the rehabilitation, improvement, expansion and upgrading of the water supply delivery system in Bongao.

Incidentally, it was also Assistant Secretary Reyes, then newly-appointed OIC governor of the province by President Corazon C. Aquino in the aftermath of the 1986 EDSA Revolution, who was instrumental in the establishment of the Bongao Water District. Being a native of the place, Reyes knew very well the problems and hardships the residents had to endure on account of the lack of potable water supply hence he included water supply development particularly in the capital town of Bongao among his top priority programs.

In 1987, Reyes facilitated the passage of a provincial board resolution creating the BWD and thereafter appointed its board of directors headed the now-deceased former assemblyman Manuel Espaldon which on the other hand appointed engineer Rosendo R. Reyes as the water district's first general manager. To help the fledgling BWD, OIC-governor Reyes also provided monthly subsidy to support its initial operations.

Eventually, the BWD was granted a loan of P11.9 million and technical assistance by LWUA and a P7.7 million grant from the national government through the representation of then OIC governor Reyes. With these funding and technical assistance, the BWD then embarked on a massive rehabilitation, improvement and expansion works on the Bongao water system which was first constructed as a project by a military task force based in town in the early 70s at the onset of the Muslim separatist rebellion in the South.

The original Bongao water system constructed by the military consisted only of a single water pump that supply water to the town proper through a main pipeline installed undersea across the Sikiat Channel from a well source in Sanga-Sanga. At that time there was still no bridge linking Sanga-Sanga to the rest of Bongao. The system was first operated by the NAWASA and later transferred to the provincial government under then governor Jaafar. The provincial government rehabilitated the already corroded undersea pipelines and operated the system with very little success on account of limited connectors and poor water bills collection. As in other places without previous piped water service, the folks were not used to regularly paying for water.

That's the past. Today, not only is the BWD supported by its water concessionaires, it is also backed up by the national, provincial and local government authorities as exemplified in the construction of its P4.4 million mini water treatment plant which was financially assisted by a P1.9 million loan from LWUA and P1 million grant each from Rep. Jaafar and Gov. Matba. The BWD funded the remaining P0.5 million as its equity counterpart.

The dramatic development of the water supply in this capital town over the past almost two decades has contributed in no small measure in the improvement of the living condition and livelihood of the residents and of the local health and sanitation condition. It can also be said that the improvement of water supply is helping in the overall effort to attain peace, stability and progress in Bongao.

Significantly, apart from providing round-the-clock water service to residents in all of Bongao's thirteen barangays, the BWD also supplies substantial volume of potable water to some neighboring islands and fishing as well as commercial vessels operating within the province.

"Never again will Bongao and our children and future generations suffer from deprivation of clean water," former OIC governor now agrarian reform assistant secretary Reyes stressed during the recent 19th anniversary of the foundation of Tawi-Tawi as a separate province from Sulu.