Ombudsman vows probe into flood control ‘corruption’ as Cebu reels from Typhoon Tino’s wrath

Ombudsman Boying Remulla on Friday vowed that a special task force formed to investigate flood control projects will give the utmost priority to anti-flood programs in the towns worst hit by Typhoon Tino, particularly Cebu.

“To the families of all victims of the calamity — we hear you, and we have acted,” the statement reads. “Justice will be pursued with compassion, diligence, and resolve.”

The commitment came in the wake of Typhoon Tino, the latest to hit the Philippines, which caused massive destruction, mainly in Cebu and other parts of the Visayas.

As of Friday, the death toll was pegged at 188, according to the Office of Civil Defense, while 96 were reported injured. The highest number of fatalities was recorded in Cebu with 139. Rescue teams, meanwhile, are still searching for 135 missing people.

The latest bulletin by the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council estimated that 9,585 houses were damaged by the typhoon, 264 of which were totally destroyed. The projected damage to agriculture stands at P10.61 million, while infrastructure losses amounted to P6.33 million.

The typhoon’s powerful onslaught prompted several groups to stage a Friday protest at the Office of the Ombudsman in Quezon City, demanding accountability from officials allegedly involved in large-scale corruption in the flood control projects of the Marcos administration.

The group asserted that there is a pressing need to investigate at least 414 infrastructure projects with a staggering price tag of P26.7 billion in hard-hit Cebu.

Among the groups that joined the demonstration, the Kalikasan People's Network for the Environment claimed that corrupt officials and their cohorts bear responsibility for the catastrophic damage caused by the powerful typhoon.

The groups said this includes President Marcos Jr., accusing him of “institutionalizing corruption” in the government’s infrastructure and flood control budgets.

They demanded that Marcos explain the approval of these budgets “under the guise of unprogrammed funds” to which the infrastructure and flood control allocations were charged.

Opposition lawmakers have tagged the unprogrammed appropriations (UA) — serving as standby funds — as a conduit for corruption that allows erring officials, including members of Congress, to gain kickbacks.

Despite mounting calls for its abolition, the House version of the General Appropriations Bill, passed recently, retained a hefty P243 billion in unprogrammed appropriations.

House Committee on Appropriations Chair Mikaela Suansing, however, allayed public fears, assuring that the projects and programs listed under the UA will only be funded if the government generates excess revenue in 2026.

The groups are expected to stage another protest at Luneta Park in Manila on 30 November.