Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Secretary Manuel Bonoan on Thursday admitted there was no flood control master plan and that current efforts were merely remedial or band aid-style in nature, giving rise to persistent flooding in Metro Manila.
Meanwhile, the Philippine government expressed gratitude to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) for its humanitarian assistance and donation of relief goods to the communities affected by Super Typhoon Carina.
The latest heavy flooding in the metropolis and nearby areas occurred amid typhoon Carina and the southwest monsoon or habagat. despite the DPWH's whopping budget for flood control.
Testifying in the hearing of the Senate Committees on Public Works chaired by Senator Ramon Revilla Jr., Bonoan said the existing 5,521 flood control projects were meant for immediate flood mitigation.
He said these flood projects suffered delays from 2019 to 2023 due to various reasons including the COVID-19 pandemic.
He said these were also the same projects referred to by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. in his third State of the Nation Address.
Senator Imee Marcos grilled Bonoan on the flood control projects which usually get enormous amounts in the national budget.
Marcos said it would appear that the projects involved only small ones.
She also noted that under the 2024 national budget, it was agreed upon that the funds for foreign-assisted projects be removed or declared nil.
These funds, she said, were intended for big-time flood control projects, with some of them placed in the unprogrammed appropriations of big projects for flood control.
The P23-billion allocation for feasibility studies alone also drew flaks.
Due to the many studies conducted by DPWH, it allegedly failed to create an integrated master plan to ultimately resolve the massive flooding problems.
Bonoan likewise disclosed that the DPWH failed to conduct dredging and silting operations as the allocation for these activities were removed in the 2023 and 2024 budget.
As a result, there were no funds for the maintenance, rehabilitation, and operation of the old dredgers.
He said the failure to dredge waterways resulted in shallow rivers which easily overflowed during heavy rains.
In another development, the shipment of relief goods from the UAE arrived at Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 2 on Tuesday and was immediately facilitated by the Bureau of Customs.
The donation was received by Philippine government officials led by Interior and Local Government Secretary Benjamin Abalos Jr. and Social Welfare and Development Secretary Rex Gatchalian, as well as representatives from the Office of the First Lady led by Christine Kate Lleno.
The UAE was represented by Ambassador Mohammed Obaid Alqattam Alzaabi and Special Envoy to the UAE for Trade and Investment Anna Kathryna Yu Pimentel.
The shipment included essential food products which will be distributed to local government units for their constituents in the hardest-hit areas.
Editor’s Note: This is an updated article. Originally posted with the headline: “DPWH blames ineffective flood control projects to patchwork approaches”
