Group pushes floodwater management

CEBU, Philippines — The Movement for Livable Cebu (MLC) has urged local government units and national government agencies to take urgent and comprehensive action following the severe flooding that hit Metro Cebu during the onslaught of Typhoon Tino on November 4, 2025.

The group has launched a petition calling for stronger floodwater management measures, citing the significant loss of lives and extensive property damage caused by the disaster.

“While the heavy rainfall brought about by Typhoon Tino was a natural trigger, we are convinced that the disaster’s severity was exacerbated by the lack of political will, wrong engineering, and criminal neglect of established technical studies that have long identified the effects of uncontrolled urbanization and their solutions in Cebu,” read part of the petition presented to Cebu Governor Pamela Baricuatro.

The petition is addressed not only to the governor but also to officials of Cebu City and other affected local government units, as well as the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) and other national agencies.

MLC stressed that the flooding in communities along riverbanks was not a “coincidence” but the consequence of encroachment into waterways, worsened by ineffective and “corruption-ridden” flood-control structures.

The group also noted that the disaster highlighted how Cebu’s waterways have shifted under the “new normal” brought about by climate change.

“Karon makita na nato ang TINO-od nga flood plain sa Cebu,” MLC said.

“We violate this boundary at the risk of lives, damage of property, incalculable public distress and economic dislocation,” it added.

To prevent similar tragedies, MLC is pushing for a series of interventions. These include the creation of a Cebu Floodwater Management Office under the Department of Economy, Planning, and Development in Central Visayas (DepDev-7); the demarcation of the extent of the Nov. 4 flood; the declaration of no-build zones in flood-prone areas; the relocation of at-risk families to safer communities; and the establishment of linear parks along riverbanks.

The group is also calling for the removal of poorly designed or improperly constructed flood-control structures near rivers; a moratorium on all riverbed sand and gravel quarrying until a science-based regulatory framework is in place and fully enforced; stricter implementation of solid waste and sewerage management policies; and the rehabilitation and proper management of Cebu’s watersheds.

MLC’s appeal has gained support from Governor Baricuatro, who reiterated the need for science-based solutions, accountability, and inter-local collaboration—similar to the Mega Cebu framework—to prevent disasters like the one Metro Cebu experienced on November 4.