Marcos wants rainwater to be made into clean, potable water
At A Glance
- According to Guillen, the DENR has identified NIA's irrigation facilities. He said these facilities needed investors so the agency could treat and purify the water which could later be distributed by the Local Water Utilities Administration (LWUA).
President Marcos has ordered the proper use and disposal of rainwater by making it a clean and potable water source, National Irrigation Administration (NIA) Administrator Eddie Guillen said.

In a news forum in Quezon City, Guillen said the President met with the NIA, the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) in Malacañan where he made NIA’s water rights multipurpose.
He explained that Marcos wanted NIA's water rights to be multipurpose because more than 70 percent of the water rights are only used for irrigation.
"Alam naman natin na kapag sa irigasyon kapag tag-ulan ay hindi na nga namin nagagamit iyon, eh (We know that in irrigation we can't use the water during rainy season)," Guillen said on Saturday, July 13.
"So, ang gusto ng ating Pangulo iyong water rights ng NIA, puwedeng gawin na magamit sa bulk water sa inumin (So the President wants NIA's water rights to be able to use the water for drinking)," he added.
According to Guillen, the DENR has identified NIA's irrigation facilities. He said these facilities needed investors so the agency could treat and purify the water which could later be distributed by the Local Water Utilities Administration (LWUA).
In addition, Guillen said President Marcos urged NIA and DPWH to work together in ensuring that rainwater will not divert to the sea as waste but rather be used effectively.
He added the President is also pushing to build better, purposeful irrigation projects.
Following the meeting in Malacañan, NIA and DPWH officials met with Speaker Martin Romualdez concerning conserving rainwater and getting support in flood control and irrigation facilities. Guillen said they have garnered P77 billion.
"Malaking bagay po ito kasi alam natin kung gaano ka-efficient ang DPWH sa pag-construct ng project (This is a big deal for us since we know how efficient the DPWH is in constructing this project)," Guillen said.
"Hindi ho ito kakayanin ng NIA lang, kasi limited nga po ang aming engineers, but DPWH napakarami nilang resources (The NIA cannot do this alone since we have limited engineers, unlike the DPWH that has many resources)," he added.