As heavy monsoon rains continue to inundate the country, Senator Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan called for the development of a comprehensive national flood management plan and a full accounting of public funds allocated for flood control projects.

Senator Francis "Kiko" Pangilinan (Senate PRIB photo)

In a statement on Monday, August 10, Pangilinan said it is imperative for the government not to normalize the occurrence of flooding during the rainy season when the country is experiencing an enhanced southwest monsoon.

Over the week, the monsoon rains triggered flooding in several parts of Metro Manila and nearby provinces, forcing thousands of residents to evacuate and disrupting classes, work, transportation, and other daily activities in the past week.

“Flooding should not be the norm. Our fellow citizens should not have to live in fear and anxiety whenever it rains. We see the same scenes every time it rains—flooded roads, floodwaters entering homes and schools, and families forced to evacuate,” Pangilinan said.

“Furthermore, flooding causes massive disruption to everyone’s lives. Children cannot attend classes, some businesses cannot open, and people are unable to get to work,” the senator added.

He also lamented how Filipinos are reduced to depending on emergency response during times of calamities, instead of the government being proactive in its flood management plans.

“We need a long-term, national flood management plan. Our projects and plans must be integrated. Even if we spend billions, if our flood control management plan lacks coordination, our roads and homes will inevitably remain prone to flooding,” the lawmaker pointed out.

Pangilinan also called for a complete accounting of flood control funds, the projects funded, their location, costs, contractors, implementation status and the actual results on the ground aside from the initial investigations into the controversies surrounding flood control projects in the country.

“It is the right of every Filipino to know where every peso allocated for flood control went. It must be clear where the funds were spent and what the results were. We cannot have projects that exist only on paper, yet people still get flooded when it rains,” Pangilinan said.

He said a national flood management plan must be preventive, science-based, transparent, and designed for long-term solutions.

Moreover, he said this must address not only present challenges, but future problems brought about by climate change and other environmental concerns.