Public Works Secretary Manuel Bonoan assured the public that most of the government’s flood control projects implemented last year will be completed on time.
Bonoan made the statement amid mounting criticisms over continued flooding even in the metropolis during heavy rains.
Senators earlier lamented the unresolved problem of flooding despite the department’s P180 billion budget.
“The projects to solve the flood crisis are still ongoing. Let me put it this way, I can only speak for what we started — we have just been in this administration for one year and the projects that we’re implementing for flood control projects under the 2023 budget are ongoing,” Bonoan said.
He admitted there were some delays in the projects because of right-of-way issues, acquisition of areas, and weather disturbances but said “most of them are ongoing right now.”
For his part, Zambales Gov. Hermogenes Ebdane Jr. said the recent flooding in several coastal communities caused by torrential rains highlighted the need for the local government to intensify efforts to dredge heavily-silted rivers and restore their capacity to carry water into the sea.
“Flooding was observed to be worse in barangays near river mouths because sediments get deposited there naturally when the current slows down at the point where the river meets the sea,” he said.
“Thus, it is crucial that these areas which are natural catch-basins for sediments should be dredged immediately as more rains are expected so that we can create bigger drainage areas that will convey river water to the sea more efficiently,” Ebdane added.
Meanwhile, Bonoan said more than three million jobs are expected to be generated from the Marcos administration’s infrastructure development programs,
“We are now implementing a total capital outlay budget of about more than P800 billion. And we are implementing maybe about 70,000 big and small contracts all over the country. So you can just imagine the labor force that we need in terms of skilled and technical people,” he said.
According to the DPWH secretary, the administration’s various infrastructure projects have opened the door for the labor sector to aid Filipino workers.