Poe: Agencies involved in flood control to face scrutiny

Sen. Grace Poe promises to make it harder for agencies involved in flood control projects during upcoming deliberations on proposed budgets for 2025. | PHOTO: Bibo Nueva España/Senate PRIB

MANILA, Philippines — Sen. Grace Poe vowed to make it harder for agencies involved in flood control projects during upcoming deliberations on proposed budgets for 2025.

The chairperson of the Senate committee on finance lamented Friday how increased allocations for flood control over the years seemed not to have materialized on the ground, citing the recent massive flooding in Metro Manila and its surrounding areas due to torrential rains from typhoon-enhanced southwest monsoon.

“The worsening flooding in Metro Manila appears not to complement the increasing budget we are allocating for flood control projects every year,” Poe said in a statement.

“Sa darating na budget deliberation, dadaan sa butas ng karayom ang flood control budget ng DPWH (Department of Public Works and Highways), MMDA (Metropolitan Manila Development Authority) at iba pang ahensya,” she added.

(In the upcoming budget deliberations, the flood control projects of the DPWH, MMDA, and other agencies will go through the eye of a needle.)

The executive branch, through the Department of Budget and Management (DBM), is expected to submit to Congress its proposed P6.352-trillion National Expenditures Program for 2025 on Monday, July 29.

After the House of Representatives finalized its version of the budget, it will be handed over to the Senate for its turn to deliberate on the proposed expenditures.

READ: 2025 budget approval a House priority, says Romualdez

According to Poe, they will also call on local government units to ensure that other infrastructure projects do not affect waterways.

“We will also urge concerned agencies and local government units to ensure building and other infrastructure projects do not block waterways,” she said.

“With every downpour, our taxpayers are left shortchanged and wading through damaging and disease-carrying floods. Inanod na rin ba ng baha ang bilyon-bilyong pondo para sa (Did the flood also wash away the billions of funds for) flood mitigation?” she asked.

READ: Metro Manila now under state of calamity due to Typhoon Carina

Many parts of Metro Manila and nearby provinces were flooded from Wednesday to Thursday due to non-stop rains brought by the boosted southwest monsoon, locally termed habagat.

The massive flooding has forced a local government council to place Metro Manila in a state of calamity.

On July 24, Navotas Rep. Toby Tiangco said the city and its neighbors would not have experienced severe floods if only the Tangos-Tanza Navigational Gate were not damaged.

The floodgate was damaged when a barge was towed in by tugboats — leading Tiangco to mull possible legal action against the company that owns the barge.