President Bongbong Marcos ordered the Department of Public Works and Highways to finish clearing Metro Manila’s rivers and waterways before the 2026 rainy season. Public Works Secretary Vince Dizon said the directive requires DPWH to complete dredging and declogging operations in major rivers, creeks, esteros, and drainage systems across the capital to reduce flooding and speed up the recession of floodwaters.
“We really should clear all of this before the rainy season next year so that the flooding in Metro Manila can be alleviated at least,” Dizon said in a radio dzMM interview. He added that Marcos set the deadline. “He said that everything needs to be cleaned up before the rainy season in 2026, so that’s the timeline he gave.”
The cleanup is being carried out under DPWH’s flood-mitigation efforts, which involve coordination with the Metro Manila Development Authority and local governments as dredging and obstruction removal continue across several cities. Parallel waterway clearing operations are also underway in other flood-prone areas such as Metro Cebu and Bacolod.
Dizon said residents should feel early improvements once major obstructions are removed. “I think next year, it [the efforts] will already provide relief. Even if we could not completely eliminate the floods, at least if they do occur, they will subside quickly,” he said.
The declogging work aligns with ongoing flood-control programs across the country. DPWH has reported thousands of completed projects between 2022 and 2024 and additional projects in the pipeline, including major components of the Pasig-Marikina Flood Control Management System. A comprehensive ADB-funded flood-control master plan for Metro Manila is expected by 2026 to guide long-term structural interventions.
The intensified clearing push comes as flood-control spending and project implementation face scrutiny. The Commission on Audit previously flagged underutilized MMDA funds, while separate investigations have led to the suspension of DPWH personnel tied to irregular flood-control projects in the provinces. Dizon has ordered reviews of locally funded projects while keeping foreign-assisted flood-control works moving due to stricter external oversight.
