PRESIDENT Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. has ordered the blacklisting of contractors behind defective and anomalous flood control projects and directed the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) to hold accountable officials who awarded them the contracts.
Malacañang on Thursday, August 8, 2025, said the order follows the President’s dismay over billions of pesos spent on projects that failed to prevent flooding during typhoons and heavy rains.
Presidential Communications Office Undersecretary and Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said the President issued the directive to the DPWH, saying those responsible for negligence, corruption, and fraud must be held accountable.
“Ayon kay Pangulong Marcos Jr., dapat na may managot sa ganitong uri ng kapabayaan, katiwalian at panloloko, at tiyakin na mananagot sa batas ang lahat ng may sala. Nakakadismaya at nakapagtataka kung bakit napupunta sa mga pabayang contractors ang mga ganitong proyekto,” Castro said.
(President Marcos Jr. said there must be accountability for this kind of negligence, corruption, and deception, and that all those responsible must be brought to justice. He added that it is disappointing and puzzling why such projects end up in the hands of negligent contractors.)
“Ilang taon na ang lumipas at paulit-ulit pa rin ang dinaranas ng taumbayan,” Castro quoted Marcos as saying.
(Several years have passed, yet the people continue to endure the same hardships.)
Marcos also directed the DPWH to determine who was responsible for hiring the blacklisted contractors and require them to explain why these firms continued to land major projects despite their poor performance.
The order was issued Wednesday following the President’s visit to Iloilo City, where he inspected flood control projects and conducted an aerial survey of flood-hit areas.
Marcos reiterated his call for the public to report anomalous flood control projects through the sumbongsapangulo.ph website.
Marcos on Monday revealed that 15 construction firms cornered P100 billion worth of flood control projects from July 2022 to May 2025, with five of them having projects in almost all regions, raising doubts about the awarding process.
He noted that many projects lacked details on the type of structures built and had “copy-paste” designs and costs, which he deemed improbable.
Marcos also flagged discrepancies between provinces with the most projects and those most prone to flooding.
Malacañang on Tuesday said the President will not spare anyone, including friends or close associates, in the probe into alleged irregularities in the country’s flood control projects.
The DPWH will not take part in the investigation and will only provide information, Malacañang said.
The agency has not issued any public statement on Marcos’ blacklisting order as of Friday morning. (JGS/VoxPop Philippines)