The problem of floods in various places in Laguna has become extreme—and the province’s mayors and especially its new governor, Sol Aragones, can only face up to this issue even if the hard way.
They just cannot look the other way or kick the can of sardines down the road as their fellow Lagunenses wade in knee-deep flood water.
My usual visits to my farm in Paete became an occasion for this Manila-based writer to witness and verify the extent of this near catastrophic floods.
The collected rainwater inundate many areas of the province during heavy rains, even just the habagat and without any LPA or storm. Examples are the southbound SLEX near Splash island; subdivisions in San Pedro and Biñan, the Bay, Calauan and Sta. Cruz highways, and even Paete, Pakil and Balian.
Days before she assumed office, Governor Aragones met with San Miguel Corp.'s Ramon S. Ang to talk about investments and the floods.
You see, RSA has assisted the province in desilting its rivers and streams, specifically in Dela Paz, Biñan and San Pedro City as part of his conglomerate's Community Service. This is a donated service and for free, for which we in Laguna are thankful.
The siltation, mud cover and tons of organic matter and garbage flowing for decades in Laguna de Bay are among the causes of floods.
It should interest Laguna residents and officials that the flood problem could have been remedied years ago had former President Noynoy Aquino embarked in his adventurous disaster called Scarborough (Panatag) shoal standoff in April 2012.
Joaquin Sy, former president of Federation of Filipino Chinese Chambers of Commerce and a known advocate of Philippine-China friendship and cooperation, told Herman Tiu Laurel in a media interview that he was in an advance stage of negotiations with the Chinese firm Changchiang Shui Li state water company to desilt and rehabilitate Laguna de Bay and start a water management project in the province just before the Scarborough debacle.
But since the Chinese firm was state-owned and President Aquino upon the dictates of the United States chose to escalate tensions in the South China Sea with the deployment of the gray ship BRP Gregorio del Pilar, the biggest warship of the Philippines, the Changchiang Shui Li state water company had to back out of the project.
With the current cozying up of President Bongbong Marcos to the US and his rejection of our independent foreign policy, good projects like this one cannot possibly see the light of day.
Perhaps we will have to wait for a more pragmatic and progress-driven administration---could it be Sara Duterte's in 2028--before the project dreamed of by Mr. Joaquin Sy could be realized.
Thanks for Chinoys RSA and Sy for your efforts. In the meantime, Laguna folks had to use rubber boots and wooden bancas just like in the old days of San Luis and Lagumbay.
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