DAVAO CITY – Davao City first district Rep. Paolo Duterte questioned the Department of Public Works and Highways over its handling of flood control measures on the Talomo River in this city.

DPWH Secretary Vince Dizon ordered immediate dredging and the reconstruction of a flood control dike following severe flooding here during his inspection of flood-hit areas at Central Park Subdivision in Bangkal on Wednesday morning, where Taal St. was submerged on Friday night, July 24.

The DPWH Secretary expressed frustration over the recurring flooding, noting that the same community was severely affected by flooding in 2019.

Dizon said he was informed that the Talomo River had not been dredged for about 10 years, allowing silt to accumulate, reducing the river's capacity, and contributing to flooding in nearby communities.

The DPWH called for an investigation into the matter, particularly the use of public funds for flood control projects in Davao City and their actual impact on communities.

Duterte said it was unacceptable that Talomo residents faced another major flood seven years after the 2019 disaster, despite an existing Davao Flood Control Master Plan developed with assistance from the Japan International Cooperation Agency.

The lawmaker said the master plan had been submitted to the national government as early as 2023, but had not been acted upon.

He questioned Dizon's statement that he only recently learned of the plan and that funding would be proposed only under the 2027 General Appropriations Act.

"The question is, where was the plan for the past three years?" Duterte said, questioning why no substantial action had been taken despite the availability of the flood control blueprint.

Duterte urged the DPWH to examine its own records and determine who prepared, approved, and funded flood control projects, and why the master plan was not acted upon earlier.

Available DPWH records contradict the impression that little or no flood-control work has been undertaken on the Talomo River since 2019.

DPWH records indicate that it has implemented or completed numerous flood mitigation and riverbank protection projects on various sections of the Talomo River since 2018 worth more than P880 million.

Among the earliest documented projects was a P65-million flood mitigation structure implemented in 2018.

In 2021, the DPWH awarded at least six major flood control contracts covering different sections of the Talomo River, with project costs ranging from P64.8 million to P96.5 million.

According to the DPWH, projects include reinforced concrete revetment walls, slope protection, steel sheet piling, riverbank stabilization, and other flood-mitigation structures.

The agency also completed a P86.85-million concrete revetment project covering about 1,081 meters in Balite, Barangay Calinan, in 2024. Another P50-million project was completed in Los Amigos in the same barangay.

Additional Talomo River flood control projects worth P96.5 million each were programmed for 2025, including improvements along the river's right bank and outfall section.

Records, however, show that these projects were either canceled, failed during procurement, or were not included in the final 2025 national budget.

The records have raised questions about the apparent gap between the flood control projects already implemented along the Talomo River and the ongoing flooding affecting communities in the area.

Duterte stressed that flood control should not be limited to dredging, saying it also requires river improvements, dikes, drainage systems, watershed management, and the implementation of a long-term master plan.

The lawmaker called for accountability and urged the DPWH to determine why the existing flood control plan had not been acted upon sooner.

According to the DPWH, investigation will examine whether existing projects have been effective, properly maintained, and dredged, and whether rising siltation and urbanization have affected the river's flood control capacity.

For residents of Central Park Subdivision and other communities on the Talomo River, flooding has renewed questions if existing flood-control investments have been sufficient to protect them from recurring floods.