Pangilinan Seeks Strict Review of DENR Spending Amid Widespread Flooding

Senator Francis Pancratius N. Pangilinan is calling for a strict Senate review of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources’ (DENR) spending on anti-pollution programs, attributing the widespread flooding to poor urban development. This comes after weeks of heavy rains and flooding triggered by successive typhoons and southwest monsoons. In a statement, Mr. Pangilinan urged the DENR to enforce stricter regulations on reclamation, quarrying, mining, and land conversion projects. "We cannot keep engineering our way out of floods while approving developments that remove the very forests, wetlands, floodplains, and waterways that absorb and carry water," he said. He added that he will scrutinize the DENR’s expenditures on the implementation of anti-pollution laws such as the Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, Solid Waste Management Act, and the Extended Producer Responsibility law. Mr. Pangilinan also emphasized the urgent need for an assessment of quarrying and land conversion projects, citing the DENR’s previous statement that urbanization and paved surfaces impact flooding in Metro Manila. Furthermore, the senator proposed that the DENR establish "no-go zones" in critical watersheds, require flood impact studies, and bolster the monitoring of quarrying and mining operations. Permits for such projects must be revoked for violations of environmental regulations, he asserted. Meanwhile, another lawmaker called for swift accountability in the flood control scandal. Navotas Rep. Tobias Reynald “Toby” M. Tiangco stated that the recurring flooding across Luzon and Metro Manila underscores the urgency of determining how billions of pesos appropriated for flood mitigation were spent and who benefited from alleged irregularities. Mr. Tiangco urged investigators to look beyond contractors and intermediaries to establish whether other individuals were involved in planning, directing, or manipulating project allocations. "It is not enough to catch those at the bottom," Mr. Tiangco said in Filipino. "If there is evidence against those who planned, ordered, maneuvered the budget, or benefited from this system — no matter how high their position — they must be held accountable." He also called on President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. to ensure that Executive departments and agencies fully cooperate with investigators and turn over relevant evidence. "The President started this fight when he exposed the flood control scandal. Now he has to finish it," Mr. Tiangco concluded. Source: BusinessWorld Nation