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Winwyn Marquez slams public officials over flood response

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Reina Hispanoamericana 2017 titleholder Teresita Ssen &quot;Winwyn&quot; Marquez took to social media to air her frustration over public officials she said have fallen short in their duties, as floods brought by the southwest monsoon or habagat continue to swamp several parts of the country.In a Facebook post, Winwyn said she has noticed something off in the way some politicians have been speaking in public lately, as if Filipinos were the ones at fault for asking for help after losing their homes to floodwaters.&quot;Ako lang po ba, or parang may something talaga sa ibang public servants lately? The way they talk and present themselves… parang kasalanan pa ng mga tao for expecting help after nila malubog sa baha?&quot; she wrote.The beauty queen did not name anyone. But her post came as several local officials faced criticism online over how they carried themselves at the height of the flooding.Winwyn said those in office should not forget who they are talking to.&quot;Read the room. You&#x27;re speaking to people you&#x27;re supposed to serve. Hindi naman instant solution ang hinihingi, diba? Konting empathy, urgency, at humility lang sana,&quot; she said.&quot;Talk to them properly. Find solutions. Work with the people instead of making them feel like they&#x27;re the problem. Public service is called service for a reason. Sakit sa brain,&quot; she added.In a separate post, Winwyn said no family should lose a loved one because of failures in government.&quot;Nakakaiyak. Nakakagalit. Nakakapagod,&quot; she wrote.&quot;Hindi dapat ganito. Walang pamilyang dapat mawalan ng mahal sa buhay dahil sa kapabayaan, incompetence, at kasakiman ng mga taong nasa posisyon at dapat naglilingkod sa taumbayan. People deserve better!&quot; she said.She added that while calamities cannot be stopped, their damage can be lessened with proper preparation.&quot;Mother Nature can be unpredictable. We cannot control when disasters happen or how powerful they can become. But we can prepare. We can build better systems. We can act before it&#x27;s too late,&quot; she said.&quot;Hindi natin kontrolado ang kalikasan, pero may mga bagay na kaya nating paghandaan at maiwasan..... kung ginagawa lang nang maayos ang trabaho,&quot; she added.She closed her post with a call to those in power: &quot;Filipinos deserve better!!!!&quot;Her posts landed in the middle of one of the worst flooding episodes in years. Weeks of habagat rains, made heavier by a run of storms, have left large stretches of Luzon under water, with Pampanga bearing the brunt.Much of the public anger has landed on local officials. Photos that spread over the weekend showed Pampanga Governor Lilia Pineda, her son Vice Gov. Dennis &quot;Delta&quot; Pineda, and San Fernando Mayor Vilma Balle-Caluag in luxury labels while checking on flooded communities – Dennis in Balmain, Lilia in Prada while looking over damage at the Sto. Cristo Dam in Lubao, and Vilma in a Burberry jacket paired with Calvin Klein leggings. Commenters online were blunt about it, with one asking how officials could turn up in designer rainwear when ordinary residents can barely afford a kapote.Lilia said sorry in a television interview Monday night, admitting they were wrong to dress that way and describing the backlash as a &quot;wake-up call.&quot; She said she does not live lavishly and that the outfits were a one-off, explaining that she simply wears whatever she picks up in the morning.She has since told reporters she cannot afford to be distracted from disaster work, while Dennis declined to answer his critics and said he hoped people would instead see the service he and his mother are giving Kapampangans.Malacañang weighed in on Tuesday, with Palace Press Officer Claire Castro saying public service is measured by whether officials show up and act, not by what they have on.Lilia had already been criticized days earlier. In a GMA News interview, she told residents to pray, heed government warnings, ready themselves for emergencies and look after their own families, saying the public cannot leave everything to the government because there are simply too many people to attend to.The Palace answered that assistance is always there, but that citizens also carry a share of the work in softening the blow of disasters.Lilia has separately said the provincial government had no hand in planning some of the national flood control projects in Pampanga, which were funded nationally and taken up through the Regional Development Council.Winwyn is no stranger to public office within her own family. She was crowned Reina Hispanoamericana in Santa Cruz, Bolivia on November 4, 2017, the first Filipina to take the title, and she finished first runner-up at Miss Universe Philippines 2025.She is the daughter of actor-comedian Joey Marquez and actress Alma Moreno, both of whom built political careers in Parañaque.Joey was vice mayor from 1992 to 1995 before serving as mayor for three straight terms, from 1995 to 2004. Alma sat as a first district councilor in the Parañaque City Council from 2007 to 2016, and has been a barangay councilor of Barangay Tambo since November 2023.—By Paolo Lim

Winwyn Winwyn Marquez took to Facebook to criticize public servants amid the habagat floods, saying leaders owe Filipinos empathy, urgency, and humility.

Winwyn Winwyn Marquez took to Facebook to criticize public servants amid the habagat floods, saying leaders owe Filipinos empathy, urgency, and humility.

Winwyn Marquez slams public officials over flood response: 'Filipinos deserve better'

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Winwyn Marquez slams public officials over flood response: 'Filipinos deserve better'

Push Team

Published September 02, 2026 04:27 PM PHT

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Updated September 02, 2026 04:43 PM PHT

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