Pangilinan, Hontiveros want Senate probe on destructive flooding in Luzon

The destructive floods that submerged several areas in Luzon during and after the onslaught of Typhoon Ulysses should be looked into by lawmakers, two minority senators said on Tuesday.

Senator Francis "Kiko" Pangilinan bared his plan to file a resolution seeking a Senate probe on the deadly floods in Cagayan Valley where at least 24 deaths had been recorded.

"Naiwasan kaya ito kung na-control nang maayos ang pagbukas ng mga flood gates ng Magat Dam? Kung nabigyan ba ng sapat na warnings ang ating mga kababayan na tatamaan ng mga pagbaha?” he said in a statement.

A former chairperson of the National Irrigation Administration Board during former President Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino III's term, Pangilinan emphasized that there are protocols on releasing water from dams.

“Merong protocol 'yan, at hindi lang sa ilalim ng isang ahensya. Coordinated dapat with PAGASA and the local governments lalo na sa usapin ng early warning," he said.

The warning should have also been issued through mobile text messages, radio, and local TV channels, among others, Pangilinan added.

Cagayan Governor Manuel Mamba said the residents are planning to sue the management of Magat Dam for the yearly flooding woes that are being experienced in the province.

PAGASA, meanwhile, maintained that residents living near the Cagayan River had been properly advised

Magat Dam had seven gates open at one point on Nov. 12 and released water volume equivalent to 106.223 Olympic-sized swimming pools, or around two swimming pools per second.

NIA explained that Magat Dam had to open its gates to avoid a catastrophe if it breaks.

Senator Risa Hontiveros, meanwhile, has filed Senate Resolution No. 571 calling for an investigation on the man-made causes of the severe flooding in Cagayan, Rizal and Marikina City in the aftermath of Typhoon Ulysses.

It has an end view of institutionalizing sustainable and inter-generational measures against flooding and typhoon-related damage.

Citing information from the Masungi Georeserve, she said logging and land-grabbing in the Upper Marikina Watershed and Sierra Madre mountain range could have been a factor.

“Alin dito ang talagang kasalanan natin? We need to know the answers immediately before the next typhoon hits. Natural calamities are beyond our control and can be unpredictable, but there are causes to the historic devastation of Typhoon Ulysses that could have been addressed,” she said in a separate statement.

“We are not new to natural disasters. Paulit-ulit ang kwento. Napapagod at nagagalit ang taumbayan, and rightly so. Let’s find out what is really causing this vicious cycle, and change the story once and for all,” she added.

Hontiveros also stressed that the "intersections of climate disasters and pandemic create unique problems for communities, as already-inadequate evacuation centers now have to contend with the protocols of COVID-19 management."  —KBK, GMA News