SMOKESCREEN?

Amid heated exchanges between residents of Barangay Landayan in San Pedro City and Dela Paz in Biñan City over the Biñan City local government’s decision to resort to water pumping to alleviate the city’s flood issues, some sectors cautioned netizens not to get too caught up in the drama.

The reason?

“May mga ilang vested interest na nais talagang pag-awayin ang mga lider at mga residente ng dalawang lungsod ukol sa isyu ng baha,” one analyst who spoke on condition of anonymity told OpinYon Laguna.

“At isa lang ang dahilan nito: guluhin at lituhin ang taumbayan upang mailihis ang isyu sa nagpapatuloy na mga rebelasyon sa mga maanomalyang flood-control projects sa ating lalawigan,” he added.

The real issue

And what is the real issue here?

Simple: the billions in public funds that were allocated for flood-control projects in San Pedro City, Laguna.

The question San Pedrenses should ask their public officials is: where in the world did the billions allocated for these projects go?

The facts have been repeated so often, but they deserve to be repeated over and over again.

The facts: P1.458 billion has been allocated for flood-control projects under the General Appropriations (GAA) from 2023 to 2025, based on data collected by OpinYon Laguna’s research team.

Not to mention that P993 million worth of flood-control projects in the city were bagged by the controversial couple Curlee and Sarah Discaya during that period.

And, as it had been revealed during the recent hearings and investigations into the flood-control mess, some members of the House of Representatives reportedly received a 25- to 50-percent “kickback” for each project.

Necessity

OK, so more than a billion pesos have been allocated for flood-control projects here in San Pedro City.

And, as some officials of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) have claimed (another thing worth repeating), there are no “ghost projects” here in the city.

But here’s another important question: are these projects really what San Pedrenses need to solve our longstanding water woes?

Look at the list of the projects allocated in San Pedro City: most projects consist of rip-rapping and rehabilitation of slope protection structures along creeks and rivers.

But what about solving the issue of flooding in the city's coastal barangays?

Almost no funds have been allocated towards constructing dikes or seawalls to contain the waters from Laguna de Bay, which have risen beyond its critical threshold level of 12.50 meters.

Only one project concerned the “construction of shore protection (near bay)”, in the 2024 General Appropriations Act. (That project, by the way, was bagged by a Discaya-linked firm.)

What a far cry from the seawalls (often serving a dual purpose as “coastal roads” being built in Davao City, Tacloban City, Calbayog City, Sorsogon City and other coastal cities.

Not to mention the dike built along the shores of Barangay Dela Paz in Biñan City, which the city government repurposed as a tourist attraction called the Biñan City Esplanade.

Or the Laguna Lakeshore Road Network (LLRN), which also doubles as a seawall that will contribute to easing flooding along the lake.

Take note, too, that most of the projects allocated for flood-control in San Pedro City were allocated to barangays that are far from Laguna de Bay.

Given that most of these projects are (reputedly) vetted both by national and local government officials, would it be safe to say that the gargantuan corruption we are now uncovering goes all the way from the top down to the barangay officials?

Legal charges

If there are indeed irregularities in the continuing flooding woes experienced by residents of Barangay Landayan and other areas along the lake, the best course of action is to take the issue to the courts, some sectors argue.

That’s exactly what consumer advocate Ray Junia did a few months ago when he filed a complaint in the Office of the Ombudsman against former DPWH Secretary Manuel Bonoan and other officials, for negligence in the San Juanico Bridge fiasco.

“Kung reklamo lang nang reklamo ang ibang mga sektor nang wala man lamang dinadala sa korte, that means someone’s trying to evade responsibility by resorting to ‘trial by social media,’” Junia, a resident of San Pedro City, told OpinYon Laguna.

Junia disclosed that a group of consumer advocates and those committed to good governance are planning to file their own charges against government officials who may be involved in anomalous flood control projects in Laguna province.

“Kinakalap lang natin ang mga kailangang ebidensya, pero tiyak na may maghahabla ng kaso sa Ombudsman laban sa mga sangkot na opisyal dito sa ating probinsya,” he added.

(Photo by John David Nuñez)

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