[1] The Binaliw landfill tragedy: an “act of God” or caused by regulators’ negligence?
The landfill where the Cebu City Government dumps 600 or more tons of garbage daily collapsed Jan. 8, 2026. Four casualties were confirmed even as rescuers were still trying to find 34 others feared buried in the mountain of trash.
On blame-throwing, Mayor Nestor Archival reportedly blamed God along with DENR regulators who “must be held accountable.”
Why was the landfill not closed earlier? There must be due process first, Archival was quoted as explaining.
Was there a mountain landslide caused by the rains? Apparently not. The pile of garbage, estimated at 24-stories high, must have collapsed under its weight.
[2] The flood-control projects in Cebu: none is ghost or substandard and not one of the 11 local congressmen and congresswomen, incumbent or ex, engaged in bribery or kickbacks?
Not “yes” and not “no.” We do not know who, if any lawmaker from Cebu, has enriched himself/herself from the flood-control funds. But given the evidence of looting in other congressional districts across the country, the presumption hangs until refuted by evidence or lack of it.
What the Cebu public knows so far are figures on funds released to Cebu districts comprising of “allocable” and “unprogrammed funds.”
“Sumbong sa Pangulo” website numbers on projects across Cebu province from 2022 to 2025: P26.7 billion. Another source, the so-called Cabral-DPWH leaks, had a total of P83.3 billion “new pork,” in the form of “allocables” assigned to Cebu’s 11 districts and other funds merely “parked to the districts “for a fee” to the district lawmakers.
With more than 400 projects in Cebu alone, investigations may not have reached here yet.
The presumption though is that the malpractices in other parts of the country could also be -- was most likely -- committed here.
[3] Some netizens’ flogging of Sen. Imee Marcos’s sleeveless dress in Sto. Nino Church or Gov. Pam Baricuatro’s rush to Imee’s defense, with a plea for understanding: which is cool?
Some social media comments were more priestly than the Agustinian priests, who didn’t rebuke Senator Imee and didn’t even mention her or the incident.
As to the senator’s offense of the dress code, which her protocol person didn’t avert, the governor must feel she couldn’t be more protective of church rules than the church administrators.