Senator Raffy Tulfo grilled officials of the National Irrigation Administration (NIA) on Thursday, Nov. 20, asking them to explain alleged defects in the Bulo Small Reservoir Irrigation Project (Bulo SRIP) in Bulacan despite the agency’s claim that the facility had already been rehabilitated.

During the Senate deliberation on the NIA’s proposed 2026 budget, Tulfo stated that the reservoir continued to exhibit cracks, holes, and weakened concrete walls, despite the supposed repairs that cost ₱50 million. Tulfo had flagged the project as early as 2024 for water leakage and easily crumbling surfaces. He said that when his staff returned to the site in September, based on the video and farmer interviews he presented, the concrete surface still peeled off easily.

Tulfo stressed that irrigation projects should withstand typhoon signals No. 4 or 5, as the NIA knows that the country is hit by storms every year. Yet, he said, these projects sustain damage even from Signal No. 2 typhoons—indicating that the materials used may be substandard.

He pointed out that similar cases of disrepair and other substandard irrigation projects could be found in various parts of the country.

"Galing dun staff ko last month. Wala pong rectification na nangyari if you will ganun pa rin po yung itsura ng irrigation marami pong butas butas pa rin na pinagtutuluan ng tubig (My staff went there last month. No rectification was done—if you go there, the irrigation system still looks the same. There are still many holes where the water is leaking)," Tulfo said.

However, the NIA stated that the contractor had properly repaired the irrigation project at no cost to the agency and provided photos of the project—photos that Tulfo criticized for being taken from a distance instead of showing close-up details of the structure.

"Now, bakit malayo kuha bakit di close up para makita natin eksaktong repair na ginawa? (Now, why is the shot taken from far away? Why not a close-up so we can see the exact repairs that were done?)" Tulfo said.

Tulfo then challenged NIA Administrator Eddie Guillen to resign if it was proven that the reservoir had not been fully repaired — a challenge Guillen accepted.

“The administrator has said he is willing to resign, so he is vouching for the integrity of the repair as accepted by the Irrigators’ Association,” Sen. Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan, sponsor of the NIA budget, said.