‘If I were the President, I will resign!’

This was how Sen. Cynthia Villar yesterday described her disappointment over the very slow progress in the ongoing rehabilitation efforts on world-renowned Boracay Island by the Boracay Interagency Rehabilitation Task Force (BIRTF).

Villar, protesting varying reports being presented to her by different agencies involved in the rehabilitation, particularly went ballistic on the prospect that only 30 percent of more than 400 inns and hotels in the island would be compliant to the policies laid out by the task force.

Interior and Local Government Undersecretary Epimaco Densing III, during the committee hearing, said the DILG had inspected more than 2,300 establishments on the island.

Of the number, Densing said only 71 of the 440 resorts hotels and inns were compliant with the requirements.

“If I were the President, I will resign …it’s embarrassing,” said Villar during the hearing.

Villar particularly scored the task force for its policy on waste water management that seems to discourage business establishments on the world-renowned island.

Villar noted operators would be discouraged with the policy requiring establishments with 50 rooms and above to build their own sewage treatment plants, while those with 49 rooms and below should group together and have a clustered sewage treatment plants.

“I think there is problem in the waste water issue, I think they (business establishments) find the waste water treatment quite expensive so they are hesitant to connect,” said Villar in an interview after the hearing.

The charge depends on the size and requirement of a certain establishment. It was not made clear, however, how much is the minimum payment to connect to the sewer line.

“So I said they (task force) should make policy, maybe to give discount or lower (the charges); at least the (business) people will be encouraged to connect,” she added.

“You are making policies, (but) you don’t consider if these can be fulfilled by the people.

The policy should be at the center of what would you like and what the people could comply — it is in-between. You don’t care – you just tell them to follow; if not, you will be closed,” Villar also said.

Villar also branded as “unacceptable” the target of 30 percent reopening of the more than 1,000 establishments on Boracay Island come 26 October, when the six-month rehabilitation period set by President Duterte ends.

“I don’t think that the 30 percent target is a very good target — it’s too low. That means that if you don’t connect (to the sewage), you cannot open on October 26,” said Villar.

She said that even 50 percent is “not good” in terms of tourism and business.

Densing stressed that Boracay Island was like a “wild, wild west” with 163 establishments, including big ones, operated without proper government permits.

Densing emphasized the need for all establishments to comply with the laws now.

“Why should we allow establishments to continue to operate without business permits? Although this is already outside the issue on water, this is an issue of governance,” said Densing.

Densing said the task force has set conditions for the reopening of businesses on Boracay.

These are: (1) There should be 30 consecutive days that the water coming out of the island should be within SB Standards; (2) At least 50 percent of the illegal structures on the wetlands should have been dismantled; (3) 70 percent of the road system and the drainage system being put up by the DPWH should be in place; (4) 100 percent dismantling of structured violating the 25 + 5 easement rule; (5) Sanitary landfill should have zero wastes; (6) Reclamation of the five wetlands with structures, and (7) Solution to the drainage issue.

Villar attributed the slow phase of the Boracay rehabilitation to the very low target.

“That is why you are not working double time — because you have a very low target,” said Villar.

The senator said extending the closure of Boracay will be “too much.”

During the hearing, Villar also told Crisostomo Aquino, owner of the controversial Boracay West Cove, to just file a complaint before the courts if he feels he was aggrieved with the closure of his hotel.

But Villar stressed that Aquino clearly violated laws when he erected the hotel at a property declared as forest land.

“Bring your issue to court if you feel you are aggrieved,” Villar told Aquino.

Boracay West Cove was among the establishments ordered dismantled by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources for violating environmental laws.