President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., in his fourth State of the Nation Address (SONA) on Monday ordered a review of the list of completed, failed, unfinished and even ghost flood control projects within the last three years.
He vowed that someone would be held accountable for the recent flooding incidents around the country.
He directed the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) to submit the complete list of all flood control projects started or completed in the last three years from every region.
He said the Regional Project Monitoring Committee shall review and verify these projects to identify those considered as “failures, those that were not finished and those that are alleged to be ghost projects.”
Marcos said these lists would be published to enable public scrutiny.
“There will be an audit and performance review regarding these projects to check and make sure and to know how your money was spent,” he said.
Marcos said he himself has seen the sloppy flood control projects, and in some cases even failed projects, when he visited and inspected the communities that were affected by the heavy downpour and flooding.
“I saw that many flood control projects are sloppy and falling apart. And the rest have now become just a figment of the imagination,” he said in Filipino.
“Huwag na po tayong magkunwari. Alam naman ng buong madla na nagkakaraket sa mga proyekto … Kaya sa mga nakikipagsabwatan upang kunin ang pondo ng bayan at nakawin ang kinabukasan ng ating mga mamamayan, mahiya naman kayo (Let’s stop pretending. The public knows that there is racketeering in these projects … So to those who conspire to take the public funds and to rob the future of our citizens, shame on you),” he said.
These illegal activities should not be repeated, Marcos said, vowing to get to the bottom of it and hold accountable those who are responsible.
“In the coming months, cases will be filed against those responsible including the contractors who are accomplices. The public should know the whole truth. Someone must be held accountable for the severe damage and corruption,” he said
