Philippines’ Marcos to remove flood control funding in 2026 budget

[MANILA] Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr said there’s no need to include flood control projects in the 2026 national budget, in the wake of corruption allegations in this type of infrastructure.

The US$6.2 billion funding for flood control projects this year can be rolled over to 2026, Marcos said in a video of a podcast released by his communications office.

“We already are seeing that all flood control projects supposed to be in the 2026 budget are probably no longer needed,” Marcos said. The Department of Public Works and Highways is seeking a budget of 250.8 billion pesos (S$5.67 billion) for flood management programme for 2026.

The president made the announcement as investigations on alleged irregularities in these projects deepened. In a Senate committee hearing earlier in the day, a government contractor tagged several members of the House of Representatives and public works officials for their alleged involvement in corruption in flood control projects. Some of these lawmakers denied the allegations. BLOOMBERG