Floodgate casts shadow over BBM’s infra legacy
Notably, expelled Ako Bicol Rep. Zaldy Co publicly accused Marcos and former House Speaker Martin Romualdez of receiving billions of pesos in kickbacks from flood control projects.
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Daily TribuneNotably, expelled Ako Bicol Rep. Zaldy Co publicly accused Marcos and former House Speaker Martin Romualdez of receiving billions of pesos in kickbacks from flood control projects.
President Ferdinand “Bongbong” R. Marcos Jr. wants his infrastructure legacy measured by the long-term benefits of the bridges, expressways and railways that will outlast his presidency.
But with less than two years left in office, his infrastructure program is being judged on two fronts: whether enough flagship projects will be completed before he leaves Malacañang, and whether the administration can restore public confidence after ghost and substandard flood control projects were uncovered during his term.
The issue has become more pressing as government investigators continue probing hundreds of suspected ghost flood control projects and alleged irregularities involving billions of pesos in public funds, even as government infrastructure spending has slowed sharply.
The latest data from the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) show infrastructure and other capital outlays fell 52 percent to P41.5 billion in April from P85.8 billion a year earlier.
During the first four months of the year, infrastructure spending totaled P189.3 billion, down 45.6 percent from P347.6 billion in the same period last year.
A DAILY TRIBUNE review of the administration’s major infrastructure commitments showed mixed progress. Several flagship projects have advanced through the procurement and construction stages. Others remain suspended, are behind schedule, or won’t be completed until after Marcos leaves office in June 2028.
5 hours to 45 minutes
Among the administration’s centerpiece projects is the P219-billion Bataan-Cavite Interlink Bridge, a 32-kilometer span that aims to reduce travel time between Mariveles and Naic from five hours to 45 minutes.
In his 2025 State of the Nation Address (SoNA), Marcos announced that construction would begin before the end of the year.
Since then, the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) has completed key procurement milestones.
In November 2025, the agency awarded Package 2, covering the 1.4-kilometer Cavite land approach, to a consortium composed of China Wu Yi, Jinan Urban Construction Group Co. Ltd., and CM Pancho Construction Inc.
In February this year, DPWH awarded Package 1, covering the 4.8-kilometer Bataan land approach, to a consortium of China Wu Yi Co. Ltd. and Fujian Road & Bridge Construction Group Co. Ltd.
Although procurements have advanced, the bridge itself remains years away from completion.
Uneven progress
Another project highlighted by Marcos was the South Luzon Expressway extension from Sto. Tomas, Batangas to Tiaong, Quezon.
The President said motorists would begin using part of the extension this year. “In 2026, motorists are expected to begin using the SLEX extension from Sto. Tomas to Tiaong,” he said.
As of June, DPWH data showed Package A (Sto. Tomas-Makban) was 43.70 percent complete, while Package B (Makban-San Pablo) was at 77.42 percent. Package C (San Pablo-Tiaong) is nearing completion.
Rail transport tells a more complicated story.
Following the damage caused by severe tropical storm “Kristine,” Marcos pledged to restore and strengthen the Philippine National Railways (PNR) Bicol Line.
“We are gradually restoring and strengthening the portions of the PNR Bicol Line damaged by ‘Kristine,’ including the Binahan Bridge,” the President said in Filipino.
“Before long, the railway will be extended to Ragay, Camarines Sur and Tagkawayan, Quezon. This will greatly ease traffic for motorists traveling between Quezon and Bicol,” he added.
However, the latest route map posted on the PNR website lists the line from College to Sipocot — including the Tagkawayan station cited by Marcos — as being suspended.
Luzon’s spine
In Mindanao, the administration continues to pursue the Mindanao Transport Connectivity Improvement Project, which Marcos described as the counterpart of the Luzon Spine Expressway Network.
“Just as we have the Luzon Spine Expressway Network, we also have the Mindanao Transport Connectivity Improvement Project. Through this project, we will improve the 428-kilometer road network connecting Cagayan de Oro, Davao, and General Santos,” Marcos trumpeted.
The Department of Economy, Planning, and Development has approved the project for implementation, but its target completion date extends beyond the President’s term.
Counterpart funding
Beyond procurement and construction, another challenge confronting the administration’s infrastructure program is the availability of government counterpart funding for foreign-assisted projects.
Several major projects financed through Official Development Assistance (ODA) require the Philippine government to shoulder counterpart costs such as right-of-way acquisition, land preparation, taxes, resettlement, and other pre-construction expenses before foreign loan proceeds can be fully drawn.
Congress has repeatedly reduced funding for these obligations. In the 2024 national budget, only P4 billion was appropriated for counterpart funding despite significantly larger agency requests.
In 2025, about P150 billion worth of foreign-assisted projects were placed under Unprogrammed Appropriations instead of receiving regular funding.
The issue resurfaced during deliberations on the 2026 budget, prompting concerns that the implementation of several ODA-backed projects could slow because the government’s counterpart share remained uncertain.
Funding challenges
Portions of the government’s counterpart obligations were likewise transferred to Unprogrammed Appropriations, meaning releases would depend on excess revenues or the fulfillment of financing conditions rather than guaranteed annual appropriations.
Other flagship projects have encountered similar funding constraints.
The Department of Transportation acknowledged that the Philippine National Railways South Long Haul, or Bicol Railway, lacked sufficient funding in 2025 for preparatory work and right-of-way acquisition while the government pursued new ODA financing.
The Mindanao Railway likewise remains a priority but cannot proceed until a new funding source is secured following the collapse of the proposed Chinese ODA package.
Taken together, the projects present a picture of an infrastructure program moving at different speeds.
Some flagship projects have cleared procurement and entered construction. Others are making measurable progress but remain unfinished. Still others have yet to resume operations or are scheduled for completion after 2028.
Flood control reckoning
The administration’s infrastructure agenda is also being measured against the growing controversy over ghost and substandard flood control projects.
Government investigators initially identified 421 suspected ghost projects out of roughly 8,000 flood control projects reviewed, while authorities froze about P180 billion linked to hundreds of bank accounts associated with contractor firms as part of the investigation.
The Office of the Ombudsman has likewise disclosed that it is investigating dozens of cases involving controversial flood control projects, while separate criminal and administrative proceedings continue.
The controversy has shifted the debate over infrastructure from the number of projects announced to the quality, integrity, and accountability of public spending.
Notably, expelled Ako Bicol Rep. Zaldy Co publicly accused Marcos and former House Speaker Martin Romualdez of receiving billions of pesos in kickbacks from flood control projects.
The allegations have become part of the broader political controversy surrounding the government’s infrastructure program.
Whether those allegations are substantiated or disproved, they have heightened public scrutiny on how infrastructure funds are appropriated, awarded and spent.
Duterte benchmark
Marcos is not the first president to confront the challenge of turning an ambitious infrastructure agenda into completed projects.
His predecessor, Rodrigo Duterte, launched the Build, Build, Build program in 2017 with 75 flagship projects, a list later expanded to 119.
By the end of Duterte’s term in June 2022, only 12 flagship projects had been completed, with three more finished under the succeeding administration.
Among the most prominent were the MRT-3 Rehabilitation Project, New Clark City Phase 1, the Clark International Airport Expansion Project, the Bonifacio Global City-Ortigas Center Link Road Project, the General Santos Airport Expansion Project, and the Angat Water Transmission Improvement Project.
Duterte officials argued that the administration’s infrastructure accomplishments extended well beyond the flagship list, citing thousands of kilometers of roads, hundreds of bridges, flood control projects, airports, and seaports completed nationwide.
Still, the experience underscored a recurring reality of Philippine infrastructure development: many of the country’s largest and most complex projects require more than a single six-year presidential term to complete.
Marcos now faces the same test and more, the biggest of which is the Floodgate Scandal.
