By Benjamin Cuaresma
MANILA — Senator Panfilo “Ping” Lacson is demanding a clearer accounting of the government’s proposed P107.4-billion flood control allocation for 2027, warning that billions more could be poured into projects without a long-term strategy to prevent recurring floods.
Lacson’s concern comes after the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) reportedly received P1.939 trillion for flood control programs from 2011 to 2025, yet many communities continue to experience severe flooding whenever heavy rains strike.
In a statement Tuesday, Lacson questioned how the proposed 2027 allocation would be used and whether the government has an integrated flood management program to guide the spending.
“In the proposed 2027 budget, some P107 billion is earmarked for flood control projects. A good question to ask is, how will it be spent? Are there overall programs for this? If so, where are they?” Lacson said.
He warned that funding projects without a clear and continuing plan could simply result in more public money being spent without solving the country’s persistent flooding problem.
“Are we following a flood management program? If not, we are just wasting money because we have no direction,” he said.
Lacson pointed to DPWH figures showing that annual funding for flood management had already surpassed P100 billion in 2018.
He summarized the situation bluntly in a post on X:
“Flood control vs uncontrolled flood: P1.939 trillion funded the DPWH flood control management program under three presidents from 2011-2025 and the result is uncontrolled flood.”
For Lacson, however, the issue goes beyond the size of the appropriations.
He said the country’s recurring problem is the lack of continuity in infrastructure planning and implementation, with administrations often pursuing their own programs rather than following a long-term national framework.
“That’s the thing with us, there’s no continuity. In the US, roads are planned for 20 years, regardless of which administration implements them. Here we are fond of groundbreaking, ribbon-cutting and rushing projects for completion before an administration’s term ends,” he said.
“Each administration insists on having its own plan.”
Lacson said he intends to raise the issue during the Development Budget Coordinating Committee briefing before the Senate beginning Aug. 27.
The senator also questioned another item in the proposed National Expenditure Program involving funding for evacuation centers.
According to Lacson, each of the country’s 17 regions was allotted a uniform P180 million, resulting in more than P3 billion in total allocations.
He questioned why the funding appeared to have been distributed equally without detailed information identifying where the evacuation centers would be built or explaining the basis for the amounts.
“Was there any study to determine if a region needed more evacuation centers? There seemed to be none. That is not acceptable. There were no specifications or locations,” Lacson said.
He said allocations for disaster facilities should be supported by assessments of actual regional requirements, including population, exposure to disasters and the availability of existing evacuation centers.
Lacson likewise raised concerns over the proposed P7.2-trillion national budget for 2027, cautioning lawmakers to examine whether excessive spending on “ayuda” or social assistance could come at the expense of long-term development programs.
He stressed that social assistance has a legitimate purpose but should not overshadow investments intended to strengthen the country’s long-term economic capacity.
“There’s nothing wrong with ‘ayuda,’ but we should also look at the long-term development side of how the budget is used,” he said.
With the country moving closer to the 2028 elections, Lacson also warned that the 2027 spending program could risk becoming an “election or campaign budget.”
ia/xf
