By Brian Campued
The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) has created its own audit team to check and review the status of flood control projects across the country in line with President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s bid for full accountability and proper fund utilization, DPWH Sec. Manuel Bonoan said Wednesday.
This as the President, during his 4th State of the Nation Address (SONA), directed the DPWH to submit a list of all flood control projects that were started or completed in the first three years of his administration, a marching order against corruption in the implementation of infrastructure projects.
Marcos issued the directive as the country is still reeling from the effects of widespread flooding, heavy rains, and storm-force winds brought by the southwest monsoon (habagat) and recent tropical cyclones Crising, Dante, and Emong.
Based on data from the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) as of Thursday, two people are confirmed dead due to combined effects of the recent severe weather events, while 35 are still under validation.
According to Bonoan, the DPWH has completed about 9,800 flood control projects nationwide since the Marcos administration began in 2022, while around 5,700 projects are still ongoing.
“As the President has directed us, na ibibigay po namin iyong listahan sa kaniya, at the same time, gumawa na rin po kami ng audit team namin na papunta at tingnan po ang kasalukuyang estado ng ating mga flood control projects,” he said during the Post-SONA 2025 forum in San Juan City.
“Lahat po ng district offices namin ay inutusan ko para tingnan po lahat ng estado ng ating mga flood control projects all over the country.”
Bonoan added that their review of flood control projects will go as far back to the previous administration to assess if these are still effective at present and determine those that need fixing.
“Marami din po iyong mga flood control projects na ginawa ng previous administration, pero sa tingin ko po may mga luma na rin po dito at marami pong dinaanan na bagyo at mga flooding at tinitingnan po namin kung epektibo pa iyan o kaya kailangan po naming kukumpunihin para maging more effective ulit po ang mga projects na iyan,” he said.
Aside from building revetment walls along rivers, Bonoan noted the need to desilt or dredge major rivers to prevent severe flooding in low-lying areas.
“Ito po iyong challenge na tinitingnan namin kasi ang tinitingnan po namin dito ay kahit gaano karami iyong ginagawa naming revetment walls o sangga kung hindi namin ina-address po iyong kailangan mahukay ang siltation ay talagang aapaw at aapaw po iyon—so, iyon ang pinagtutuunan namin ng pansin,” he said.
However, the DPWH chief lamented that budget cuts affected the implementation of infrastructure projects, citing the lack of dredging equipment as an example.
“Malaki po iyong pangangailangan namin na equipment, kailangan po namin ng equipment na dapat kami na po ang dapat gumawa ng dredging para maiwasan po natin iyong haka-haka na noong mga araw daw, ito iyong sanhi ng mga korapsiyon,” Bonoan said.
Moving forward, the DPWH is eyeing to change the design of flood control projects to make it more responsive to the current climate, when severe weather events are happening more frequently.
Marcos previously stressed that the government’s disaster preparation and response efforts should now be “automatic” while continuously intensifying the areas that need improvement.
-jpv
