Senator Panfilo “Ping” Lacson called out the glaring disparity between multi-trillion-peso government allocations for flood mitigation and the relentless inundation sweeping across the country, particularly within Metro Manila.
The lawmaker raised the issue on Monday night, August 17, as torrential monsoon downpours submerged numerous communities.
“FLOOD CONTROL VS UNCONTROLLED FLOOD: PhP1.939 trillion funded the DPWH flood control management program under three presidents from 2011-2025 and the result is uncontrolled flood,” Lacson said in a social media post.
Lacson presented data outlining the Department of Public Works and Highways’ (DPWH) flood management allocations spanning the Aquino, Duterte, and Marcos administrations, highlighting that annual funding breached the ₱100-billion threshold starting in 2018:
- 2011: ₱11.323 billion
- 2012: ₱10.816 billion
- 2013: ₱15.817 billion
- 2014: ₱30.001 billion
- 2015: ₱47.849 billion
- 2016: ₱67.74 billion
- 2017: ₱81.223 billion
- 2018: ₱139.001 billion
- 2019: ₱126.062 billion
- 2020: ₱116.047 billion
- 2021: ₱140.462 billion
- 2022: ₱145.622 billion
- 2023: ₱287.018 billion
- 2024: ₱346.771 billion
- 2025: ₱372.814 billion
The senator previously highlighted that despite the government disbursing more than ₱1 trillion over the last 15 years—equivalent to approximately ₱350 million daily—flooding problems remain unresolved.
Through privilege speeches and Senate Blue Ribbon Committee inquiries, the lawmaker has exposed multiple alleged irregularities surrounding flood management infrastructure in provinces like Bulacan and Oriental Mindoro.
Most recently, Lacson and his investigation team uncovered questionable slope protection projects and unpermitted reclamation operations in Taguig City, a key political bastion of Senate Minority Leader Alan Peter Cayetano.
All gathered documentary evidence and investigative findings have been submitted by Lacson to the Office of the Ombudsman for formal review and potential court prosecution.