PAMPANGA — They dance, sing and joke in waist-deep floodwaters, but behind the laughter is growing anger among residents over persistent flooding and what they describe as failed flood control efforts.

Across Pampanga, residents have turned submerged streets into unlikely stages for protest, using humor, music and sarcasm to vent their frustration over floods that have disrupted homes and communities.

Content creator Jhennie Angeles posted a video of herself walking through flooded barangays while criticizing alleged corruption and government inaction and urging residents to “wake up.”

Her caption, “Pampanga gising,” has since been shared across social media.

The page Kapampangan Vines has also documented residents using humor to criticize the flooding and government response.

“We ask for help, but what we get is empty promises — then they give us free rides instead? What is that?” one resident told the page while showing his flooded home and damaged belongings.

“Our house looks like a junkyard now,” he added before posing against the floodwaters and asking: “Is it fun?”

In Camella Homes in Apalit, where floodwaters reportedly reached neck-deep levels, residents expressed frustration in different ways.

Some held signs reading “We ❤️ U BBM,” while others resorted to sarcasm.

“Beautiful houses. Rich or poor — now we are all the same,” one comment shared by Maria Ibanez read.

In San Jose Matulid, another resident appealed for assistance.

“Please give us something — we are underwater too. Not even sardines have arrived,” the resident said.

Others responded sarcastically: “Let's vote for them again — yay, how fun.”

Former congressman Dong Gonzales also became the subject of criticism after a photograph of him smiling at an event circulated online with the caption: “All smiles and very fresh Dong Gonzales — and we are flooded.”

Statements by Pampanga Gov. Lilia Pineda on the flooding have likewise drawn criticism online, with residents questioning the effectiveness of flood mitigation measures in the province.

In Candaba, members of the Bagna Drumbeaters from Malolos joined residents in playing music while standing in floodwaters.

“Ikulong! Ikulong — mga kurakot,” they chanted, turning the gathering into a protest against alleged corruption.

Residents also jokingly dubbed the flooded area “Crocodile Beach Resort,” another jab at allegations of corruption involving infrastructure spending.

Flores Pineda summed up the situation in another post: “POV: We have officially entered survival mode.”

Power, water and other essential services have been disrupted in several flood-hit communities.

In an interview, Nate Samson of San Fernando said accountability over problematic flood control projects could determine whether residents regain confidence in the government.

“Unless President Marcos Jr. puts someone in jail over this flood control mess, no one will believe him. If he fixes this — that could be his legacy to the people,” Samson said.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has described increasingly extreme rainfall brought by climate change as part of the country’s “new normal,” while acknowledging that existing flood control systems have been overwhelmed by unprecedented rainfall.

For flood-hit residents in Pampanga, however, adapting to that reality has increasingly come with a mixture of anger, exhaustion and humor.

They may be dancing and laughing in the floodwaters, but their message is anything but a joke.