Senate probe on DPWH's underutilized flood control budget sought

Senator Grace Poe wants the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) to explain the downward trend of its fund disbursement for flood control and management projects despite having budget increases in the last five years.

Poe filed Senate Resolution 1080 urging an appropriate committee to investigate the underutilization of the DPWH budget for flood control projects following the devastation brought by the recent inclement weather. 

“The extensive damage wrought by Super Typhoon Carina highlights an urgent need for a thorough inquiry into the utilization of the DPWH's Flood Management Program and other pertinent projects related to the government's flood control efforts to ensure the cost-effective allocation of resources,” she said. 

Poe, who chairs the committee on finance, stressed the need to scrutinize the government’s seemingly failed flood control projects and mechanisms despite significant investment in the plan. 

“It behooves the Senate to demand an explanation from the DPWH, the government agency responsible for implementing the administration's Flood Management Program, as to why such a devastating incident still occurred despite the program's budget steadily increasing over the past five years,” she said.

Citing data from the chamber’s finance committee, Poe said DPWH got over P90 billion in 2020; P101 billion in 2021; P128 billion in 2022; P182 billion in 2023, and P244 billion this year.

Over the past five years, Poe said the funds allotted to the Flood Management Program have comprised about 20 percent of the entire budget allocated to the DPWH annually—with the percentage increasing to nearly 25 percent of the DPWH's budget in 2024.

“In stark contrast to the progressive increase in the DPWH budget for the Flood Management Program, the program's actual budget utilization rate has been on an alarming downward trend," she stressed.

In 2021, DPWH disbursed only 68.26 percent; 73 percent in 2022; and 58 percent in 2023.

Since 2022, under the current administration, around P556 billion has been allocated to fund flood control programs, representing nearly half of the funds for the same projects over the past decade.

During last year's Senate committee hearing for the fiscal year 2024, Poe noted it was revealed that the DPWH set aside at least P1 billion per day budget to address the flooding problem in the country—“a projection that its leadership did not dispute.”

“P556 billion is too substantial a sum of money to permit anything less than optimal efficiency and effectiveness in our government programs, yet the current state of flood management in the country clearly demonstrates a dire need for a meticulous reassessment of where our hard-earned taxpayers' money goes,” she said.

Poe urged the appropriate Senate panel to require the DPWH's submission of comprehensive and up-to-date data on the status of its Flood Management Program during the inquiry, which includes financial expenditures, project timelines, budget utilization rates, and environmental impact assessments.

She said there is also a need to ensure that such programs remain effective and responsive to the evolving needs of the country, particularly the vulnerable communities most affected by the recent devastation, and to guide in determining future budgets for the program.

“There is no acceptable excuse for the Philippine government's failure to effectively prepare for typhoons, considering that historical data reveals that the country is struck by an average of about 20 typhoons each year,” Poe said.

“The budget should be solving the perennial flooding if only it is being spent efficiently,” Poe added.