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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider Elago echoes calls for independent inquiry on disastrous Cebu floods

Elago echoes calls for independent inquiry on disastrous Cebu floods

Published Nov 6, 2025 03:15 pm

At A Glance

  • House Assistant Minority Leader and Gabriela Women's Party Rep. Sarah Elago on Thursday, Nov. 6 called for an urgent and independent investigation into the incident, which devastated communities and claimed lives in Cebu.
Gabriela Party-list Rep. Sarah Elago (Facebook)
Gabriela Party-list Rep. Sarah Elago (Facebook)


Calls to investigate the flooding disaster in Cebu at the hands of Typhoon "Tino" is beginning to snowball.
House Assistant Minority Leader and Gabriela Women’s Party Rep. Sarah Elago on Thursday, Nov. 6 called for an urgent and independent investigation into the incident, which devastated communities and claimed lives in Cebu.
“Wala dapat makalusot — mula sa mga negosyanteng sumira sa kalikasan hanggang sa mga opisyal na pumirma sa mga permit at kumita sa proyektong walang saysay. Ang kaligtasan at kabuhayan ng mamamayan ay hindi dapat isakripisyo para sa tubo at kita para sa iilan," Elago said in a statement.
(No one should get away—from the businessmen who destroyed the environment to the officials who signed the permits and profited from useless projects. The safety and livelihood of the people must not be sacrificed for profit and gain for the few.)
The Makabayan lawmaker said the flash floods in the province was the "deadly consequences of corruption, environmental neglect, and unbridled corporate greed".
A day earlier, Bicol Saro Party-list Rep. Terry Ridon, chairman of the Committee on Public Accounts, asked the Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) to look into the flood control projects in Cebu.
Formed by President Marcos, the ICI has been acting as special investigator of sorts on anomalous and "ghost" flood mitigation projects.
Elago noted reports that upland flooding and mudslides in Cebu may be linked to forest denudation and land-use conversion. This, as questions mount over the billions of pesos in flood control projects that appear to have failed in preventing widespread inundation.
Cebu alone has recorded 414 flood control projects worth ₱26 billion, including 47 in Cebu City and 21 in Talisay City, yet residents were unprotected from flash floods and overflowing rivers.
"Nakikiramay ang Gabriela Women's Party sa lahat ng apektado ng bagyo at matinding pagbaha sa Cebu. Nakikiisa kami sa lahat ng mga hakbang para sa agarang tulong, pagtitiyak ng kaligtasan at pagbangon kadugtong ng panawagan ng imbestigasyon at pananagutan dito," Elago said.
(Gabriela Women’s Party extends its condolences to all those affected by the storm and severe flooding in Cebu. We stand in solidarity with all efforts for immediate aid, ensuring safety, and recovery, alongside the call for investigation and accountability.)
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