DAVAO City-based environmental group Interfacing Development Interventions for Sustainability (IDIS) said that it recognizes the national government's acknowledgment of corruption in flood-control projects in the country following President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.’s 5th State of the Nation Address (Sona) delivered on July 27, 2026.
Atty. Mark Peñalver, executive director of Idis, said that flood control must be grounded in science, technology, transparency, and ecological protection. He said that the government should ensure that infrastructure projects are properly designed, appropriately priced, and responsive to hydrological and environmental conditions.
“Our natural systems, such as forests, watersheds, rivers, wetlands, and other ecosystems, must be recognized as critical infrastructure that protect communities from flooding and other climate-related hazards,” he said.
Idis welcomed the government's plan to review the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act; however, it strongly opposed waste-to-energy incineration, citing how it only encourages waste generation, damages the environment, and poses a huge public health risk.
“The country needs policies that prevent waste generation, ensure segregation at source, strengthen material recovery facilities, support recycling and composting, and hold producers accountable for the full life cycle of the products and packaging they place in the market,” Idis said.
The group also raised concerns about the proposed Pax Silica Industrial Hub, citing how large-scale development projects should first undergo scientific evaluation and public consultation and should have strict environmental safeguards.
“The government cannot simultaneously speak of building climate resilience while pursuing development that may place additional pressure on already vulnerable ecosystems and communities,” the group said.
In terms of economic development, the group said that economic development, environmental protection, and community welfare should go hand in hand.
Idis said that the Philippines should prioritize transitioning to clean and sustainable energy and stressed the importance of measuring tree-planting programs by tree survival, ecosystem restoration, and long-term environmental benefits instead of the number of seedlings planted.
Idis said that resilience cannot be achieved through infrastructure alone or the waste crisis through incineration; rather, it can be achieved through a whole-of-government approach that prioritizes environmental protection, accountability, and sustainable development.
Meanwhile, progressive groups staged a rally at Freedom Park on Roxas Avenue ahead of the President’s Sona, where they raised concerns about education, the economy, fascism, and the ongoing imperialist plunder by the United States and the Philippine administration.
Karapatan-Southern Mindanao Region (SMR) said that the Marcos administration has nothing to show but worsening human rights violations, unresolved corruption, and a foreign policy increasingly aligned with U.S. interests.
Ely Cayao, chairperson of Karapatan-SMR, said that four SONAs have passed and President Marcos still does not have answers on where the justice is for the victims of human rights violations, as well as accountability for the flood-control scandal and the independent foreign policy that the president promised.
"The regime speaks of fighting corruption while the Filipino people carry the burden of high prices, unemployment, landlessness, underfunded education and healthcare, despite government claims of economic recovery; officials remain free, and even the Marcos family's own unpaid estate taxes remain unresolved," he said.
Cayao said that the government has failed to prosecute those who are responsible for the nationwide flood-control scandal that involved 421 ghost projects and losses of up to P118.5 billion.
The group emphasized that no presidential speech can erase the killings, political prisoners, stolen public funds, and the worsening lives of Filipinos.
President Marcos held his fifth Sona at the Batasang Pambansa in Quezon City. His speech lasted about 1 hour and 30 minutes and focused on themes such as security, self-sufficiency, and government accountability. RGP
