By Brian Campued
A week after his fourth State of the Nation Address (SONA), President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. discussed his marching order to the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) about flood control projects as well as his stern warning to reject a misaligned national budget.
During the BBM Podcast Episode 3: Part 1, which was aired on Monday night, the President revealed that his declaration stemmed from witnessing the widespread devastation in many parts of the country due to botched flood control projects—stressing that “somebody has to answer for the suffering” of Filipinos who felt the brunt of recent calamities.
“It started last December, noong umiikot ako dahil nga sunod-sunod ‘yong bagyo at nakikita natin kung talagang napakabigat ng ulan. Noong nangyari na naman itong bagyo ngayon, pagpunta ko, nakita ko hindi nagagawa… Sabi ko kalokohan na ito. Maliwanag na hindi ginagawa ang trabaho,” he said.
According to Marcos, his office has already obtained the list of all flood control projects undertaken and continued in the past three years of the administration, and warned that private contractors found to be involved in anomalous projects will face government sanctions.
He stressed that these corporations will be required to explain how they used the funds for the projects.
“We will put them on a blacklist. Hindi na sila puwedeng magkontrata sa gobyerno. Number two, lahat ito, iyon na nga, kakasuhan natin,” the President said.
The Chief Executive likewise assured that no one would be spared from the investigation, even if they are allies of his administration.
“Mayroong dapat naman managot dahil sa… hirap na [dinaranas] ng ating mga kababayan. They have to be told who is responsible and somebody has to answer for their suffering,” he emphasized.
The House Committee on Public Accounts on Monday also launched its formal review of flood control and drainage projects under the DPWH—examining performance and fund utilization relating to government infrastructure projects.
Foreign-assisted projects must have sufficient funding from nat’l budget
Tackling another statement from his SONA, the President reiterated that he would rather operate under a reenacted budget than approve a General Appropriations Bill that is not aligned to the administration’s priority programs and projects.
According to Marcos, several foreign-assisted projects were stripped of funding during the congressional budget deliberations last year, and insertions were made to put non-priority projects under unprogrammed appropriations—allocations that often require borrowing.
These budget insertions, he stressed, jeopardized vital infrastructure initiatives as well as the country’s credibility with international financial institutions. When projects are delayed, the government is required to pay commitment fees on undisbursed foreign loans.
“Kailangan natin ibalik ‘yon dahil importante ‘yong mga foreign-assisted projects,” he said.
Concluding the first part of the podcast, the President underscored the Executive’s duty to ensure proper use of public funds.
“Trabaho naman namin na magbigay ng plano at humingi ng pondo sa Kongreso para lahat ng ating mga gustong gawin ay ating magagawa. At hindi nawawala, nawawaldas, nananakaw ang pera ng tao. Iyon lang naman ang habol namin,” he said.
“I am willing to reenact the budget if that’s what we’ll have to do. I made New Year’s Day the hard deadline; I’m sure we will find a way. I’m sure we will find a way.”
-jpv
