A week after Typhoon Tino unleashed flooding across Metro Cebu, Vice Governor Glenn Soco urged the immediate rollout of the long-pending Metro Cebu Integrated Flood and Drainage System Master Plan, warning that piecemeal projects and stop-start budgets have left communities exposed.
In a privilege speech on Monday, Nov. 10, Soco cited inundation from Nov. 3 in Cebu City, Mandaue, Talisay, Consolacion, Liloan, Compostela, Danao, Carmen, Balamban and Asturias.
“Every time it rains—and floodwaters rise again in Mandaue, Consolacion, Cordova and across Metro Cebu—people lose sleep, property and peace of mind. What hurts most is knowing this could have been avoided,” he said.
The province has declared a state of calamity twice in less than a month after homes were submerged, property damaged and families evacuated.
Drawn up by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) with the Japan International Cooperation Agency and anchored on a 2013 JICA study, the master plan outlines a basin-wide strategy from Carcar City to Danao City to manage runoff amid rapid urbanisation and climate change.
Soco said he first pushed the plan in 2017 as a private citizen and later as chair of the Regional Development Council’s infrastructure committee.
Initial outlays funded river widening and improvement in Cebu City—₱700 million in 2018 and ₱1.2 billion in 2019—but allocations later stalled. Projects proceeded without coordination, he said, resulting in uneven quality and works that diverged from the plan.
Soco asked the Provincial Board to formally endorse the master plan, require rainwater catchment systems in new developments, and summon DPWH and other agencies to report on progress.
He also called for accountability for substandard flood-control projects, saying public funds must deliver durable results.
Welcoming recent discussions with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and DPWH Secretary Vince Dizon on reviving the blueprint, Soco said short-term relief addresses symptoms, not root causes.
Priority fixes include clearing waterways, reinforcing riverbanks and upgrading drainage in critical zones, he added. “Typhoon Tino is another painful wake-up call.”
Cebu Business News
