Flood control corruption threatens PH progress – Marcos

By Darryl John Esguerra, Philippine News Agency

Marcos said past administrations allowed questionable practices by abandoning safeguards in project implementation, such as local government acceptance procedures for national projects. (PCO photo)

MANILA – President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. warned that systemic corruption in flood control projects could derail the country’s growth and deny Filipinos access to basic services, stressing that accountability and reforms are crucial to national progress.

In Episode 5 of his “Bagong Pilipinas Podcast” released Monday, Marcos said his decision to raise the issue in his fourth State of the Nation Address in July was driven by the magnitude of the problem.

“The reason I brought it up and made it part of the national discourse was quite simply because this could not go on,” Marcos said.

He said the impact of corruption is not only financial but also life-threatening.

“There is a great deal of damage that has been caused, not only financial damage or economic damage, but damage, actual damage to people’s lives,” Marcos said.

“A lousy flood control project that collapsed during the flood that killed a family — I mean, how can you live with that? I can’t live with it.”

The President said the government has already realigned PHP255.5 billion originally allocated in the Department of Public Works and Highways flood control budget for 2026 to critical social and infrastructure services.

Marcos said past administrations allowed questionable practices by abandoning safeguards in project implementation, such as local government acceptance procedures for national projects.

“What has happened has been that we have violated the rules. Those rules exist. And simply we don’t — in the last decade, they stopped following the rules,” he said.

Marcos reiterated that pursuing the issue is not optional but essential to governance.

“Nothing will happen to the Philippines if we carry on this way. The economy will never grow properly. People are not going to get help. Schools will not get better. The hospitals will not get better. We’re not going to get anywhere. All of these things will just disappear, and we’ll just be this little nation that’s feeding upon itself. And that’s why I brought it up,” he said.

The President vowed to sustain the campaign.

“I will continue to bring it up … If we resign ourselves to saying that, ‘Okay, well, we can’t do anything.

I only have six years.’ If you resign yourself to that, that I can’t do anything, you will not do anything,” Marcos said.

“And this is what we’ve seen over so many past decades. I didn’t want to be another one. I didn’t want to be a part of that kind of attitude, especially in terms of public service,” he added.