DPWH Chief Dizon Launches 'Oplan Kontra Baha' — Orders Fast-Tracked Dredging Before Rainy Season
Public Works Secretary Vince Dizon is racing against the clock — literally. With the rainy season just a few months away, the DPWH has ordered the accelerated dredging and widening of waterways in Marikina City and surrounding flood-prone areas, hoping to prevent the perennial nightmare that Metro Manila residents know all too well.
"The government is working to expedite waterway improvement. Once completed, floodwaters are likely to recede faster," Dizon said after inspecting the Marikina River flood control project. The priority targets include the Sumulong Drainage, Balanti Creek, and Manila Water site, plus resolving right-of-way issues blocking Phase V of the Pasig-Marikina River Channel Improvement Project.
Dizon has created a task force called Oplan Kontra Baha, a multi-agency effort involving the MMDA, DENR, DILG, and the private sector. The program covers everything from dredging and desilting to clearing illegal structures along waterways and enforcing proper solid waste management with LGUs. The DPWH also recently completed a major drainage upgrade on G. Araneta Avenue in Quezon City — tripling the drainage capacity.
"The president said we need to speed up the work because come June, it will rain again, there will be flooding again," Dizon said. He's also ordered the installation of mobile pumps while the pumping station at E. Rodriguez remains unfinished, plus continuous dredging of the San Juan River. In the first week of December alone, DPWH-NCR recorded over 1,474 cubic meters of declogging and 3,795 cubic meters of desilting.
The anti-flooding push isn't limited to Metro Manila — Dizon confirmed similar work is underway in Metro Cebu and Bacolod City. As anyone who's been stuck in waist-deep floodwater during a typhoon knows, these projects can't come soon enough. Sana lang matuloy at matapos before June hits.
Source: The Manila Times
