Iloilo corners 67% of PHP 6.4-B Western Visayas flood budget

A motorcycle is transported by lifeboat after deep floodwaters made it impossible for light vehicles to pass through a flooded section of a national highway in Hamtic, Antique, on July 24, 2026. (Photo courtesy of Province of Antique/Facebook)

By Rjay Zuriaga Castor

ILOILO CITY – The Department of Public Works and Highways has proposed PHP 6.4 billion for flood control, rehabilitation, and drainage projects in Western Visayas under the proposed 2027 national budget, with Iloilo province and the town of Miagao accounting for the largest shares of the proposed spending.

The proposed allocation totals PHP 6.4161 billion, according to Daily Guardian’s line-item review of the proposed projects.

The review covers proposed projects under the 2027 National Expenditure Program, which the Department of Budget and Management submitted to Congress on Aug. 11 for deliberation and possible inclusion in the 2027 national budget.

The Western Visayas figure represents about 6% of the PHP 107.4 billion the DPWH is seeking nationwide for flood control next year, the smallest yearly allocation for the program since 2019.

The 2027 proposal marks the return of locally funded flood control projects to the national budget. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. ordered a zero allocation for those projects in September 2025 at the height of the ghost flood control scandal, cutting the DPWH’s approved 2026 budget to PHP 504.3 billion from its original PHP 881.3 billion request.

Budget Secretary Kim Robert de Leon has said the restored funds will pass through a stricter vetting process and that no money will be released to flood control projects that fail compliance and planning standards.

Based on Daily Guardian’s detailed line-item review, the regional allocation is distributed across major flood control construction and rehabilitation projects, pre-investment studies, district engineering office (DEO) allocations, and other project-specific flood control works.

Iloilo gets more than half

The spending pattern shows a heavy concentration in Iloilo, particularly in Miagao, where more than PHP 1 billion is proposed for river control and shoreline protection projects.

Iloilo province is proposed to receive PHP 3.499 billion, the largest allocation among Western Visayas provinces.

Combined, Iloilo province and Iloilo City are proposed to receive PHP 4.317 billion, or 67.28% of the PHP 6.4161 billion regional total.

Iloilo City alone is proposed to receive PHP 818.1 million for creek rehabilitation, slope protection, and drainage projects.

The city projects include a PHP 176 million drainage system for Bo. Obrero Creek, a PHP 178 million project for Lower Ingore Creek, and a PHP 200 million revetment wall along Buntatala Creek.

Aklan is next with PHP 1.45 billion, followed by Capiz with PHP 374.8 million, Antique with PHP 167.25 million, and Guimaras with PHP 5 million.

Miagao gets over PHP 1 billion

Among individual local government units, Miagao has the highest proposed allocation at more than PHP 1 billion.

The funding is spread across river control and shoreline protection projects involving the Tumagbok, Oyungan, and Bacauan rivers and the Miagao-Kirayan coastline.

The proposed Tumagbok River Control projects alone include four projects worth PHP 93 million each and another worth PHP 86.8 million, all in different barangays of Miagao.

The proposal also includes a PHP 93 million Bacauan River Control Project in Barangay Palaca and a PHP 93 million Oyungan River Control Project in Barangay Oyungan.

Miagao’s proposed flood control allocation is nearly six times the entire proposed allocation for Antique and nearly three times Capiz’s proposed allocation.

Repeated price tags, works divided into segments

The line-item review also shows repeated project amounts and works divided into separate packages in several proposed flood control projects.

The PHP 3.63 billion allocation under the construction and maintenance of flood mitigation structures and drainage systems includes a series of shoreline protection projects in Oton, Guimbal, and Miagao.

Five Oton shoreline protection segments are each allocated PHP 92.33 million, covering adjacent sections from Barangay Alegre to Poblacion East.

Four Guimbal shoreline protection segments carry the same PHP 92.33 million price tag.

Two adjacent shoreline projects in Miagao likewise carry allocations of PHP 92.33 million each, while another Miagao shoreline project is listed at PHP 91.993 million.

The review identified 12 instances of PHP 92.33 million allocations within this program.

Another repeated amount is PHP 93 million, which appears in several river control projects in Miagao and Guimbal.

The Tumagbok River Control projects in Miagao are a prominent example, with four of the five listed projects carrying the identical PHP 93 million allocation.

The repeated amounts do not, by themselves, establish that the projects were improperly split or that procurement rules were circumvented.

The pattern, however, raises questions about how the project scopes, quantities, and cost estimates were developed.

In Oton, the proposed shoreline protection works are divided into five separate packages covering consecutive sections, with each package priced at PHP 92.33 million.

The Guimbal shoreline protection works similarly consist of four listed segments, each priced at PHP 92.33 million, covering portions of Barangays Bongol San Vicente, Sta. Rosa, Cabasi, and Baras.

PHP 247.4 million for studies

Apart from construction, Western Visayas is proposed to receive PHP 247.4 million for pre-investment studies for flood control projects, including master plans and feasibility studies.

The largest is the PHP 102 million Iloilo City Flood Control Master Plan.

The list also includes PHP 79 million for the master plan and feasibility study for the Sibalom West River Basin in Antique and PHP 47.2 million for the Ibajay River Basin in Aklan.

Two feasibility studies for low-height dams are also included, with PHP 10.8 million for the Panay River Watershed in Capiz and PHP 8.4 million for the Jalaur River Watershed in Iloilo.

PHP 303.35 million assigned to DEOs

Another PHP 303.35 million is allocated directly to DEOs, the DPWH’s local implementing units, for localized drainage and flood control projects.

The distribution is uneven, with the Iloilo City and Aklan DEOs accounting for a substantial portion of the DEO allocation.

The Iloilo City DEO is listed with PHP 117.1 million for drainage and slope protection projects, while the Aklan DEO has PHP 104 million.

The Iloilo City DEO allocation includes two projects physically located in Balete, Aklan: a PHP 15 million slope protection structure in Sitio Agsili, Barangay Aranas, and another PHP 15 million structure in Sitio Daeamo, Barangay Arcangel.

The inclusion of the two Aklan projects under the Iloilo City DEO is notable because Aklan has a separate DEO and its own proposed flood control allocation.

PHP 2.14 billion for major river basins

Under the category for the construction and rehabilitation of flood mitigation facilities within major river basins and principal rivers, the proposed allocation totals PHP 2.1401 billion, including PHP 2.0736 billion for direct regional implementation and PHP 66.5 million through DEOs.

The largest single project cited in the review is the PHP 688.925 million Lamunan River Downstream project in San Rafael, Iloilo, which accounts for about 32.2% of the proposed allocation under the major river basin category.

The review also identified repeated PHP 150 million allocations for several river basin and river protection projects, including works along the Panay River in Capiz and the Aklan River in Aklan.

The budget document separately lists PHP 150 million revetment wall projects along the Aklan River in Barangays Daja Norte, Daja Sur, and Magubga in Aklan.

The proposed flood control spending remains subject to the congressional budget process and could still be changed before the 2027 national budget is enacted.

The National Expenditure Program is a proposed spending plan rather than an enacted budget, and congressional deliberations will determine whether individual projects and amounts are retained, modified, or removed.