Senators Mark Villar and Camille Villar, along with former politician Manny Villar, former senator Cynthia Villar, Manuel Paolo Villar, and PrimeWater officials, are facing criminal and administrative complaints related to joint venture agreements with three local water districts.

Assistant Ombudsman Mico Clavano announced in a press conference on Friday, September 18, that the agency filed two counts of graft against the said personalities, for violation of Section 3e and 9g of RA 3019 or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.

The Ombudsman received the report from the Office of the Government Corporate Council, stating that from 2015 to 2022, 75 water districts entered into a joint venture agreement with PrimeWater Infrastructure Corporation (PWIC). Nineteen of these local water districts have issued notices of pre-termination due to PWIC’s inability to provide uninterrupted water resources; instead, it provided poor drinking water standards, Clavano said.

“The Office of the Ombudsman has found that the agreements of PWIC with the local water districts are grossly disadvantageous with the local water districts. Records from the Commission on Audit Local Government Audit Sector show that adverse findings resulted in the issuance of Notices of Charge or NCs,” he added.

Moreover, the Commission on Audit (COA) has already flagged PWIC’s non-payment for the utilization or consumption of materials and supplies inventory of the local water districts. As a result, PWIC’s total unpaid obligation reached P65,650,708.07.

However, Clavano noted that this is only the initial list, as there are more water districts under investigation.