MANILA – Only flood control projects that meet all necessary requirements will be allowed to proceed, President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. said on Saturday, emphasizing his commitment to curbing irregularities in the implementation of infrastructure projects.
During an aid distribution in Gonzaga, Cagayan, Marcos said flood control projects will only be implemented if the proposal and program of work are properly prepared and have clearance from the local government units (LGUs).
Marcos assured the public of the continued implementation of fully compliant flood control projects, noting that more than PHP300 billion are available to fund them until next year.
“So, hindi pa nauubos ‘yun. So, tuluy-tuloy pa rin ang magiging flood control projects hanggang sa susunod na taon (So, it’s not yet depleted. Flood control projects will continue until next year),” he said.
“At meron naman tayong i-approve na flood control project basta’t nakita natin eh maayos -- maayos ang proposal, maayos ang program of work, maayos ang completion, may acceptance ng (And we will approve flood control projects as long as we see that everything is in order -- the proposal is proper, the program of work is well-prepared, the completion is satisfactory, and there is acceptance from the) local government. That’s the new factor that we put in,” Marcos added.
This, as the President lamented the scrapping of the requirement for LGUs to formally accept national infrastructure projects, a process he said helps ensure transparency and accountability.
Marcos earlier restored the policy requiring LGUs to formally accept projects before they are declared completed.
He attributed the prevalence of substandard and nonexistent flood control projects to the removal of LGU participation.
“Ang problema, tinanggal 'yun noong nakaraang ilang taon. I don’t know what year they removed that. Pero nagulat ako kasi napaka-importante iyan na meron kang clearance sa barangay chairman, may clearance ka sa mayor, may clearance ka sa probinsya. Dahil 'yun ang paraan namin sa local government para tiyakin na ‘yung mga project ay maganda ang pagkagawa at tama at hindi naman nagmahal ng masyado (The problem is, this requirement was removed some years ago. I’m not sure exactly when, but I was surprised because it’s very important to have clearance from the barangay chairman, the mayor and the provincial government. This is how we ensure that projects are properly executed, done right and not overly expensive),” he said.
“Mula ngayon ay ibabalik natin ang proseso ng pag-accept ng local government executives (From now on, we will restore the process of acceptance by local government executives),” Marcos added.
The President said he has also ordered the realignment of the PHP255.5 billion originally intended for flood control projects in 2026 to fund the priority programs of other government agencies.
“Kung hindi po namin ginawa iyan, iyang PHP255.5 billion na iyan, kung saan-saan na napupunta (If we hadn’t done that, the PHP255.5 billion could have been wasted in various places),” he said. (PNA)