The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) will file charges against Hi-Tone Construction and Development Corporation for allegedly failing to repair a damaged section of the Navotas City Coastal Dike, which has been blamed for worsening floods in the city’s coastal communities.

DPWH Secretary Vince Dizon said they will take over the long-delayed repair after Hi-Tone allegedly failed to act for more than a year since its dredging barge struck the dike during Typhoon Kristine in October 2024.

The incident left a 20-meter breach unrepaired and as a result, hundreds of residents were forced to flee their homes due to flooding in the area during the onslaught of super typhoon "Uwan".

“Yung hindi ginagawa ng Hi-Tone, kailangan gawin na yun. Tapos kakasuhan ko na lang yung Hi-Tone at babawiin na lang natin yung pera doon. Pero di na natin sila hihintayin (What Hi-Tone is not doing, we have to do it. Then I will just file charges against Hi-Tone and recover the funds, but we will no longer wait for them),” Dizon said, stressing that the department cannot allow the damage to remain unaddressed while flooding continues to endanger residents.

The breach caused by the company’s barge has been cited as a major factor in worsening floods in Barangay Bagong Bayan North when storm surges from super typhoon Uwan hit Navotas late Sunday night, coinciding with high tide.

“Siyempre kahit maliit lang (yung butas), kahit sabihin mong 20 meters lang, lahat ng tubig doon papasok (Of course, even if it’s small [the hole], even if you say it’s only 20 meters, all the water will enter there),” Navotas Rep. Toby Tiangco said during an inspection with Dizon, noting that seawater overflowed into low-lying communities.

Dizon said the DPWH will tap calamity and quick response funds to fast-track the reconstruction of the damaged section.

“Ipo-propose ko na, lalo na ngayon nag-declare na ng state of calamity ang Pangulo for one year, then we will use all available quick response funds to finish finally itong mga proyektong ito (I will propose, especially now that the President has declared a state of calamity for one year, then we will use all available quick response funds to finally complete these projects),” he said.

Hi-Tone Construction & Development Corp. was among the top contractors named by President Marcos in August  as having cornered a combined P100 billion—or roughly 20 percent—of the P545-billion budget for flood control projects awarded between July 2022 and May 2025.

“Hindi nga sumasagot e. Kaya malaki na atraso talaga nun sa’kin e (They aren’t even responding. That’s why it’s a huge delay for me),” Tiangco said.

He added that other essential components of the coastal protection system, including pumping stations and box culverts, remain incomplete due to fragmented funding allocations.

“Ang pondo dyan minsan P50 million, minsan walang pondo. Pag inuunti-unti yung pondo, walang nangyayari. Kailangan doon isang buo (The funding there is sometimes P50 million, sometimes no funds. When funds are released in bits, nothing happens. It needs to be allocated as one whole),” Tiangco explained.

Dizon said the DPWH has directed its district engineers to identify and complete all remaining works to ensure the coastal defense structure becomes fully operational before the next rainy season.

“Pinapalista ko na sa district engineer lahat ng kulang para ma-complete na natin ito hopefully by next (rainy) season (I’m listing all the missing works to the district engineers so we can complete this hopefully by the next [rainy] season),” he said.