President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Monday revealed “disturbing” preliminary findings from an audit of more than 9,800 flood control projects across the country, raising concerns over possible irregularities in the implementation and budgeting of these infrastructure efforts.
The audit of the flood control projects was ordered by President Marcos during his State of the Nation Address after rains brought by tropical cyclones and the Southwest Monsoon inundated largest sections of the country in July and displaced millions of people.
President Marcos told a news conference that initial results showed that only 15 major contractors—out of the 2,409 firms involved—cornered nearly 20 percent or about P100 billion of the P545.64 billion total cost of all flood control projects started when he assumed the presidency in July 2022 until May this year. Marcos said further scrutiny is needed to determine whether wrongdoing occurred.
Of the 6,021 projects reviewed so far, worth over P350 billion, many did not specify the type of flood control structures built, repaired, or rehabilitated. Several projects across different locations also had “exactly the same contract cost” despite differing terrain, design, materials used, or length, Marcos noted.
Central Luzon, the National Capital Region, and the Bicol Region accounted for 1,617, 1,058, and 866 flood control projects respectively, with a combined value of P200.19 billion.
“This is the first step. We are going to keep going. This is something that is absolutely necessary; we have to clean our ranks,” said Marcos, urging the public to report complaints through a designated website–https://sumbongsapangulo.ph–he pledged to check daily. “We need the citizen to play their part, their civic duty to report to the government what they see as being wrong… We need everyone involved.”
He acknowledged the possibility that individuals close to him could be implicated, but emphasized that his commitment is to the Filipino people.
“The people who have taken advantage of the system must pay and be answerable to the shortcomings that have been demonstrated. If there is evidence of corruption, of embezzlement, of any kind of wrongdoing, that is when we will move,” he said.
