AFTER conducting inspections and ordering immediate completion of unfinished and abandoned infrastructure projects in the countryside, Public Works and Highways Secretary Vince Dizon now trains his attention on several flood-prone major thoroughfares in the National Capital Region (NCR).
On Friday, the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) chief inspected the drainage de-clogging operations along Taft Avenue, specifically in front of De La Salle University (DLSU) Manila campus, where he witnessed DPWH-NCR personnel manually clearing the drainage systems and hauling away sack after sack of thick mud and debris.
The secretary saw firsthand the blockages that have been causing frequent flooding along that section of Taft Avenue during downpours.
He wants to replace the existing “narrow” culverts — concrete circular passages for water — with bigger ones like those installed in front of Santa Isabel near Ayala Boulevard.
“We also need to replace and widen the drainage system in front of DLSU to minimize disruptions to the public, especially the students,” said Dizon, who plans to inspect similar flood-prone areas in other Metro Manila cities in the coming days and weeks.
Acting on President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s directive to prioritize putting up high-capacity drainage systems in flood-prone major roads in Metro Manila, Dizon assured the public of more extensive drainage improvement projects along Taft Avenue with the availability of funds in 2027.
On Thursday, Dizon was with Manila Mayor Isko Moreno when he inspected España Boulevard, one of the city’s flood-prone thoroughfares whose drainage system has not been upgraded since the 1950s.
Dizon said several flood mitigation measures in the two Manila areas would be implemented in September and should only last for months, “not a year.”
“We will start implementing these flood mitigation measures, including the long-overdue drainage system upgrade along España Boulevard,” said Dizon, who has been cited by many for completing unfinished or abandoned infrastructure projects right on time after inspecting them.
