ACTING on President Benigno S. Aquino III’s directives to come up with a permanent solution to control flooding in the country, the Department of Public Works and Highways said on Monday that short-term flood mitigation projects worth P5-billion will be completed within the year.
Public Works and Highways Secretary Rogelio Singson told a press conference in Malacañang that these short term flood mitigation projects, which forms part of the flood control master plan, will entail the repair and rehabilitation of dike structures in Metro Manila and Central Luzon.
“Well, ang matatapos agad diyan… ang mga pag-aayos ng mga nasirang dike— (will be completed in) three to six months. Kasi ang iba namang nasira maiikli lang. Halimbawa, doon sa San Fernando, (Pampanga) ‘yung tinatawag nilang tail dike ay 50 to 70 meters lang. So it should be finished. But we have a long list of identified high impact priority projects worth P5-billion. ‘Yun ang unang-una naming bubunuin,” Singson said.
Aside from the aforementioned tail dike in Pampanga, Singson said that rehabilitation and improvement of the Valenzuela-Obando-Meycauayan river dikes as well as those located in municipalities along Laguna Lake such as Cainta and Rizal provinces are included in the short term flood plan.
He added that the water pumping system of Metro Manila is aging and needs proper upgrade to effectively drain out flood waters to the various tributaries around the metropolis.
“Now, other immediate projects are the upgrading of the pumping systems in Metro Manila which is the responsibility of Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) as well as clearing the waterways. This is a major intervention that needs to be done because the major cause of flooding is the overtopping, overflowing of the river systems,” he added. (PCOO)