DPWH chief blames floods on silted rivers, budget cuts
Public Works Secretary Manuel Bonoan on Tuesday blamed silted rivers and budget cuts in flood control projects for the floodwaters that swamped many parts of the country after days of rain.
“We did not inherit a bed of roses,” Bonoan said, recalling that when he assumed his Cabinet post in July 2022, the country was reeling from flooding problems partly caused by heavily silted rivers.
In his State of the Nation Address (Sona) on Monday, President Marcos vowed to sue officials and contractors who profited from flood control projects that did not function during the onslaught of storms and rain.
The administration has faced backlash over floodwaters that swamped cities and towns across the country following days of rain, which the residents blamed on idle flood control projects worth billions of pesos.
Bonoan singled out shallow riverbeds as a “major cause of flood.” That was why, he added, the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) would focus on desilting major rivers to improve their water-carrying capacity.
“Our riverbeds are very shallow and were already at the same level with the riverbanks. Nobody has ever looked into this problem,” he said in an interview over dzMM. “So any downpour will cause flooding to nearby and low-lying areas.”
‘Properly engineered’
Bonoan also cited the reduction of budgets for the preparation of “properly engineered” flood control projects to a “bare minimum” as a factor in the current state of the country’s flood control system.
“Even back then, our budget for project preparation and engineering would always disappear or be reduced to the barest minimum—but we still did our best to carry them out,’’ he said.
In the P6.326-trillion 2025 national budget, public works was apportioned P1.007 trillion, the second highest behind education’s P1.055 trillion.
The President, however, vetoed P26.065 billion worth of public works projects on flood mitigation and control.
These included P4.58 billion for the construction and maintenance of flood mitigation structures and drainage systems; P2.88 billion for the construction and maintenance of flood mitigation facilities in major river basins and principal rivers, and P182.7 million for the construction and rehabilitation of water supply, sewerage and rainwater collectors, among others.
“Mahiya naman kayo (Have some shame),” Mr. Marcos said in his fourth Sona, addressing officials and contractors who conspired to make money from projects that failed to control flooding.
He promised an audit of all flood control projects on his watch to assess which of these were failures, unfinished, or “ghost” or nonexistent projects.
‘New items’
“By next month, we will file cases against all government officials across the country who will be found liable in this investigation, including the private contractors they were in cahoots with,” he said.
On top of the budget cuts, the DPWH has had to deal with the addition of some “hastily prepared flood control projects” after the enactment of the national budget, Bonoan said.
“But there are actually projects that would just come about after the General Appropriations Act [enactment]. They just keep piling up,” he said, without going into specifics.
Bonoan promised to comply with the President’s order to list down all flood control projects on his watch.
As of May 2025, 9,856 flood control projects had been completed under the Marcos administration. Some 5,700 projects are being constructed, while more are in the pipeline, including minor flood control projects and major projects in 18 major river basins.
The government has spent a staggering P1.2 trillion on flood control projects since 2009. The DPWH’s flood control budget has increased by leaps and bounds over the years—from P42.2 billion in 2015 to P244.5 billion in 2024.
This year, P254.29 billion was allotted for the DPWH’s flood management program, nearly a third of its whopping P1.007-trillion budget.
No single masterplan
Despite the department’s ballooning budget, Bonoan told senators in August last year that there is no single integrated flood-control master plan for the country.
Rather, there are 18 separate “masterplans” for major river basins that are “tailored to address the specific characteristics and needs of each area, ensuring more efficient and targeted management of flood risks.”
A P351-billion Metro Manila Flood Control Master Plan was approved on the watch of then President Benigno Aquino III in 2012, but only 30 percent of it had been completed, according to the DPWH. It is slated for completion by 2035.
Proposed ban on officials
Meanwhile, Senate President Francis “Chiz” Escudero said he intends to file a bill seeking to prohibit lawmakers or government officials and their relatives from becoming a supplier to the government.
“We will file a measure that would prohibit to the fourth civil degree of consanguinity and affinity any lawmaker or government official to be a supplier to the government,’’ he said. “For me, there’s a clear conflict of interest and it should not be allowed.”
Escudero said he hoped this measure would be included in the priority list of the Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council, which acts as a liaison between Malacañang and Congress. —With a report from Charie Abarca
