SEN. Imee Marcos wants government agencies to account for the P132 billion in flood control funds allotted since 2018 for the Bicol provinces after they were inundated by Severe Tropical Storm Kristine.
The public “deserves transparency” on where these funds went, the senator said in a statement on Tuesday.
“It’s unacceptable that P132 billion has been designated for Bicol flood control projects, yet communities remain inundated, and families are suffering,” Marcos said.
Sen. Imee Marcos. THE MANILA TIMES PHOTO
She said the 2024 General Appropriations Act showed that the Bicol region alone received P31.94 billion this year, “totaling nearly P133 billion for flood control efforts over the past six years.”
Despite these allocations, she said Kristine had left the region devastated, with flooding at critical levels and inadequate infrastructure to protect affected areas.
Marcos called on concerned agencies, particularly the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), to report on the progress of these flood control projects for accountability.
She also backed calls for a review of the flood control budget when the Senate deliberates on the proposed P6.352 trillion 2025 national budget in November.
“For the 2025 national budget, we need effective, well-engineered solutions that genuinely address climate-related threats — not outdated responses that continue to put lives, homes, and livelihoods at risk,” Marcos said.
Senate President Francis Escudero on Monday said the government’s flood control programs would be scrutinized when the Senate begins next week its plenary debates on the proposed 2025 national budget.
With so many parts of the country devastated by Kristine’s onslaught, Escudero said it was certain the flood control budget would be a “hot topic” when the Senate takes up the proposed budgets of concerned agencies.
This includes the proposed appropriations of the DPWH, the Department of the Interior and Local Government, the Department of Social Welfare and Development, and the Department of National Defense-Office of Civil Defense.
For 2025, the proposed budget for flood control under the DPWH amounted to P303 billion, representing close to 34 percent of its total appropriations. Escudero credited President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. for responding with higher budgets for flood mitigation.
“Smart spending has a bias for durable projects, not adhocracy or band-aid solutions. We should build for the next generation, not for the next elections,” Escudero said in a statement.
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