A ranking congressman has asked newly-installed Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Secretary Vince Dizon to make the agency's ₱250.8-billion flood control plan for 2026 more attuned to the needs of flood-prone provinces.

According to House Minority Leader 4Ps Party-list Rep. Marcelino “Nonoy” Libanan, billions of pesos have been poured into flood mitigation projects that fail to protect the provinces most vulnerable to flooding.

Libanan raised this crucial point during the DPWH budget hearing with the Committee on Appropriations Friday, Sept. 5, which was attended by Dizon.

Libanan noted that 12 of the country’s 20 most flood-prone provinces are not adequately covered under DPWH’s flood control allocations in the 2026 National Expenditure Program (NEP), which House party leaders has earlier described as "riddled with irregularities".

“These provinces are identified by the government’s own geohazard mapping and assessment. How can we spend nearly one-third of DPWH’s ₱880-billion budget on flood control, yet leave out many of the areas that are most often underwater?” asked the 4Ps solon.

Based on official mapping, the top 20 flood-prone provinces are: Maguindanao, Cagayan, Pangasinan, Isabela, Nueva Ecija, Palawan, Pampanga, Agusan del Sur, Zamboanga del Sur, Iloilo, North Cotabato, Leyte, Bulacan, Northern Samar, Tarlac, Capiz, Zambales, Davao del Norte, Camarines Sur, and Western Samar.

Libanan also questioned the placement of certain DPWH projects in his home province of Eastern Samar, pointing to a ₱3-billion rock netting project in San Rafael, Taft—despite the area having no history of landslides because of its hard rock formations.

He similarly expressed surprise that flood control projects have suddenly emerged this year in the towns of Hernani and Llorente in Eastern Samar, apparently funded under the 2024 budget.

“What we’re seeing is that major project accomplishments are being reported when, in truth, work has only just begun. This sets the stage for so-called ‘ghost projects’—where high accomplishments are declared, payments are collected in full, yet little to no actual work is done,” Libanan said.

He also rued that coastal towns facing the Pacific Ocean, which suffer repeated damage from supertyphoons, have not been not prioritized for seawalls.

“Funds are still funnelled to riverbank controls instead of protecting vulnerable coastal communities. This imbalance must be corrected,” he added.

Dizon, who took over the reins at the DPWH only last Sept. 2, acknowledged Libanan’s concerns and committed to a "science-based review" of flood control allocations.

Libanan welcomed the commitment, saying: “We are hopeful that under Secretary Dizon’s stewardship, DPWH can put order and reason into project planning. Proper planning and accountability are the only ways we can win the fight against flooding while still funding the rehabilitation of major national roads such as the Maharlika Highway and the construction of new crossings such as the Sorsogon-Northern Samar Bridge.”

Dizon replaced Manuel Bonoan, who resigned as DPWH chief amid the various reports of anomalous and "ghost" flood control projects all over the country.