Camille Naredo

Residents wade through floodwaters to reach the tombs of their departed loved ones at the H.I. Cemetery in Hagonoy, Bulacan, on October 31, 2025 — two days before the observance of All Souls’ Day. Maria Tan, ABS-CBN News

Residents wade through floodwaters to reach the tombs of their departed loved ones at the H.I. Cemetery in Hagonoy, Bulacan, on October 31, 2025 — two days before the observance of All Souls’ Day.
Floodwaters remain stagnant in several parts of Hagonoy — a municipality long plagued by recurring inundation, which has recently drawn attention following the discovery of alleged anomalous flood-control projects involving several lawmakers, regional DPWH engineers, and other government officials.

Article (news)

UNDAS 2025- ALL SOULS DAY- FLOODING

Francis Orcio

ABS-CBN News

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/176294140055620250923-flood-cointrol-pampanga-ici-MT11.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" alt="Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) special adviser and Baguio City Mayor Benjamin Magalong, together with Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Secretary Vince Dizon, conduct an on-site inspection of major infrastructure projects in Pampanga on Tuesday, September 23, 2025. Maria Tan, ABS-CBN News"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) special adviser and Baguio City Mayor Benjamin Magalong, together with Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Secretary Vince Dizon, conduct an on-site inspection of major infrastructure projects in Pampanga on Tuesday, September 23, 2025. <strong><em></em></strong><em></em><em>Maria Tan, ABS-CBN News</em><em></em><strong><em></em></strong></span></span></span></div><p>MANILA -- Environmental planners and technical experts are calling for a radical overhaul of the Philippines&#x27; flood control system, long plagued by corruption, fragmented implementation, and misplaced priorities, as the scandal involving anomalous flood control projects grips the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH). </p><p>At the symposium &quot;Moving Forward from the Flood Control Scandal towards Sustainable Solutions&quot; held Wednesday, environmental planner Nathaniel Von Einsiedel, a fellow emeritus of the Philippine Institute of Environmental Planners, criticized what he described as the government&#x27;s &quot;chop-chop&quot; system of flood control contracting that divides projects into smaller packages below P150 million.</p><p>&quot;Iyong na-chop-chop iyong mga projects to less than P150 million, dine-decentralize sa mga district office. Now, when you are addressing flooding, you need a comprehensive river basin or watershed flood control plan. Hindi pwedeng, dahil may ilog dito, lagyan mo ng pader, lagyan mo ng dike. You need a comprehensive plan,&quot; he said.</p><p>&quot;Ang nakita namin is, kaya nagkakaroon ng graft and corruption, kasi china-chop-chop iyong project,&quot; he added</p><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/regions/2025/11/12/coa-flags-four-more-irregular-flood-control-projects-in-bulacan-worth-p344-million-1249">READ: COA flags four more irregular flood control projects in Bulacan worth P344 million</a></div><p>He stressed that this system, where local politicians and district engineers wield undue influence, has bred corruption and hampered the implementation of long-term, science-based flood management strategies. </p><p>&quot;Ang nangyayari by district. Kasi nandoon iyong congressman, nandoon iyong district engineer ng DPWH, and between the two of them, iyon ang nagiging source ng corruption,&quot; he said. </p><p>The symposium, which Einsiedel helped organize, convened planners, architects, engineers, and government representatives from the DPWH and Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) to push for science-driven, corruption-free flood management.</p><p>Its goal, he said, is to come up with recommendations on how to improve the approach to the way projects are identified, prioritized, and implemented.</p><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2025/11/12/ici-zeroes-in-on-80-flood-control-projects-linked-to-firms-named-by-marcos-1606">READ: ICI zeroes in on 80 flood control projects linked to firms named by Marcos</a></div><div><br/></div><div><strong>BEYOND DIKES AND CONCRETE</strong><strong><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/176294137027320251031-flooding-hagonoy-cemetery-MT25 (1).jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" alt="Residents wade through floodwaters to reach the tombs of their departed loved ones at the H.I. Cemetery in Hagonoy, Bulacan, on October 31, 2025 — two days before the observance of All Souls’ Day. Maria Tan, ABS-CBN News"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Residents wade through floodwaters to reach the tombs of their departed loved ones at the H.I. Cemetery in Hagonoy, Bulacan, on October 31, 2025 — two days before the observance of All Souls’ Day. <em>Maria Tan, ABS-CBN News</em></span></span></span></strong></div><p>Einsiedel lamented the country&#x27;s over-reliance on hard infrastructure, concrete dikes, flood walls, and drainage canals, while neglecting land use and ecological factors.</p><p>He underscored that flooding is a natural, recurring phenomenon that cuts across city and municipal boundaries. Because of this, he said, &quot;solutions must be comprehensive and coordinated,&quot; not handled separately by individual local governments. </p><p>&quot;Pareho ng Metro Manila, 17 LGUs, kung magkakanya-kanya sila ng plano, baka okay, walang baha sa isang lugar, pero baka naman inililipat nila lang iyong baha nila doon sa katabi nila na mas mababa. Kasi like for example, Quezon City, mataas ang Quezon City, pero mababa ang San Juan, Mandaluyong. So, bababa diyan iyong tubig,&quot; he further emphasized. </p><p>Einsiedel called for river basin master plans, each backed by inter-agency coordination, to serve as the framework for flood management across the country&#x27;s 18 identified river basins. He noted that river basin councils have already been established as early as 2017, but implementation has stalled. </p><p>Beyond engineering solutions, Einsiedel further pointed to the absence of a National Land Use Act as a major barrier to sustainable flood control. He said its decades-long delay has allowed flood-prone areas to be titled as private property and developed into subdivisions.</p><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/regions/2025/11/11/dpwh-to-implement-shelved-2017-flood-control-masterplan-in-storm-ravaged-cebu-1823">READ: DPWH to implement shelved 2017 flood control masterplan in storm-ravaged Cebu</a></div><p>&quot;Hanggang ngayon, wala pa tayo ng National Land Use Act. Ilang taon na ‘yang nakabitin. Kapag ganyang wala kang National Land Use Act, dine-declare ng DENR iyong mga lupa na alienable and disposable. It becomes privately-owned. But it may be flood-prone,&quot; he said.</p><p>&quot;Pareho ng nangyari sa Cebu, natituluhan iyong what is supposed to be protected area. Tapos noong natituluhan, siyempre nagtayuan na ng building, binabaha sila talaga,&quot; he said, citing Cebu as a cautionary example, where what should have been a protected area was titled and later developed, resulting in severe flooding during Typhoon Tino.</p><p>He argued that land management, not infrastructure, should form the core of flood prevention, by enforcing guided development standards and localized building codes for floodplains and coastal areas. </p><p>The symposium&#x27;s outputs, Einsiedel added, will be consolidated into a manifesto of recommendations to be shared with the government. </p><p>Reflecting on the persistence of the same flood control problems since Typhoon Ondoy in 2009, he recalled that a comprehensive flood plan for the Marikina Valley had existed since 1984, but was never implemented.</p><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2025/11/11/ridon-bares-alleged-problematic-flood-control-projects-in-davao-city-davao-occidental-2111">READ: Ridon bares alleged ‘problematic&#x27; flood control projects in Davao City, Davao Occidental</a></div><div><br/></div><div><strong>PASIG RIVER AND THE CONCRETE DILEMMA </strong></div><p>In a forum that followed, the Pasig River emerged as a symbol of the country&#x27;s flawed flood control paradigm. An architect from the UP College of Architecture warned that the construction of impervious dikes and revetments along the river, though intended to control floods, has damaged the river&#x27;s natural flow and geomorphology. </p><p>The architect said these projects, often presented as progress, ignore the ecological and hydrological realities of rivers, resulting in &quot;long-term environmental damage and ineffective flood mitigation.&quot; </p><p>Responding to him, DENR Undersecretary Carlos Primo David agreed, calling such structures a &quot;double-edged sword.&quot;</p><p>&quot;We gain something but definitely we lose something and sometimes we just don&#x27;t look at what we actually lose. The solution there is to maximize the advantages and minimize the disadvantages through proper planning and design,&quot; he said. </p><p>David added that flood management should begin with proper land use planning and nature-based design, not merely with larger drainage systems after urban development has taken place. </p><p>&quot;Baka dapat last resort yung maayos na drainage,&quot; he said.</p>

<p>At a symposium, environmental planner Nathaniel Von Einsiedel, a fellow emeritus of the Philippine Institute of Environmental Planners, criticized what he described as the government's "chop-chop" system of flood control.</p>

At a symposium, environmental planner Nathaniel Von Einsiedel, a fellow emeritus of the Philippine Institute of Environmental Planners, criticized what he described as the government's "chop-chop" system of flood control.

Planners, experts push for river basin-based flood management to replace fragmented and anomalous projects

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Planners, experts push for river basin-based flood management to replace fragmented and anomalous projects

Francis Orcio,

ABS-CBN News

Published Nov 12, 2025 05:58 PM PHT

Read More:

flood control

flood control scandal

corruption

Department of Public Works and Highways

DPWH

Pasig River

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