Senate mulls transfer of DPWH’s P268-B flood control budget to education sector

The Senate is considering removing the nearly P270 billion proposed budget of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) for flood control projects next year and transferring it to the education sector, Senator Sherwin Gatchalian said Friday. 

Gatchalian, chairperson of the Senate finance committee, pointed out that there are “red flags” in the proposed 2026 budget, with some flood control projects being duplicated, repetitive, and having exactly similar allocations. 

“Ang sentiment ng senators is ‘wag mag-approve ng ghost projects, ‘wag mag-approve ng mga projects na anomalous at may red flags—-’yun ang general sentiment. So with that, general sentiment din nila na ilipat na lang itong P270 [billion],” he told reporters in a Zoom interview. 

(The general sentiment of the senators is that we should not approve ghost projects and projects that are anomalous or have red flags. So with that, their general sentiment is to just transfer the P270 billion budget.) 

“Generally, ang sinasabi nila na itong flood control eh nakaka-dismaya at dapat ‘wag maulit,” he added. 

(Generally, what senators are saying is that this issue in the flood control is disappointing and should not happen again.) 

At the Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC) briefing in the Senate on Tuesday, several senators flagged some infrastructure projects under the proposed 2026 National Expenditure Program (NEP) for having identical allotments.

Gatchalian said that if the proposed budget for flood control projects were to be transferred to the education sector, the country would be able to finally reach the 4% gross domestic product (GDP) benchmark on education spending, as recommended by international organizations. 

He, however, emphasized that the Senate’s decision will still depend on the ongoing review by the DPWH and the Department of Budget and Management (DBM). 

“Kung maaayos naman, halimbawa, justified na, meron nang feasibility study, may detailed engineering na, wala na ‘yung mga duplications, then potentially ‘yung budget nila pwede ma-retain. So, it really depends kung ano ang ire-resubmit nila sa Kongreso at Senado,” the senator explained. 

(If the proposal would be fixed, for example, it would be justified, there’s already a feasibility study, there’s detailed engineering, there are no more duplications, then potentially the budget can be retained. So it really depends on what they will resubmit to the House and the Senate.) 

DPWH budget

Earlier, DPWH Secretary Vince Dizon said that the P268 billion funding for flood control projects under the proposed budget should be reduced

Dizon made the call during the briefing on the proposed P880 billion budget of the DPWH before the House appropriations panel, saying the P268 billion flood control fund already accounted for over 32% of the agency's budget for next year.  

“We need to start correcting the proposed DPWH budget with the errors pointed out by the member of Congress, projects which are either completed but still funded, double counting (multiple funding allocations for same project), iyan po ang kailangang immediately tanggalin (We need to immediately remove those),” Dizon said.

“Secondly, we need to comprehensively review the P268.3 billion flood control budget. Iyan po, kailangan natin bawasan without compromising ‘yung mga area na nangangailangan. Nakikita natin ngayon na mga inimplement na flood control noong mga nakaraang taon, maraming kailangang ayusin at linisin. Hindi na dapat magdagdag pa sa lugar kung saan kung hindi naman kinakailangan [ng flood control]. Malaki pong pagbaba [sa flood control budget] ang kailangang mangyari,” Dizon added.

(We need to reduce that P268.3 billion amount without compromising the needs of flood control areas.We have seen how previously implemented flood control projects in recent years need to be fixed. We do not need to add more budget to flood control projects in areas where it is not needed. We really need to reduce the flood control budget for next year.)

Flood control projects

Regardless, Gatchalian assured that the construction of flood control projects in the country will still continue next year, noting that there is about P350 billion budget remaining coming from the allocations in the previous years. 

“Marami sa mga flood control, ngayon lang ini-implement. I’m very sure marami pang natitira from 2025, so titignan namin ang underspending. Sa pagkakaalam ko, ang natitira sa flood control to date from previous budget is about P350 billion pa ang mga natitira at ongoing,” he continued. 

(Many of the flood controls are only being implemented now. I'm very sure there’s a lot of budget left from 2025, so we will look at the underspending. As far as I know, the remainder of the flood control budget to date from the previous budget is about P350 billion.) 

To recall, President Ferdinand ''Bongbong'' Marcos Jr. has tasked the DBM and the DPWH to conduct a sweeping review of the DPWH proposed budget under the 2026 NEP and make the necessary corrections. 

Palace Press Officer Undersecretary Atty. Claire Castro said that the President wants the review to lead to the necessary changes “to guarantee transparency, accountability, and the proper use of the people's money, ensuring the resources are directed toward infrastructure projects that genuinely serve and benefit the Filipino people.” —VAL, GMA Integrated News