Malabon residents to DPWH: Shut up, finish Camanava flood project

MANILA, Philippines - The Malabon City government yesterday urged the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) to just complete the multibillion-peso Camanava flood control project and refrain from giving a self-imposed deadline, only to fail to meet it.

Bong Padua, Mayor Canuto Oreta’s public information officer, said Malabon City residents are already fed up with the deadlines set by the DPWH to complete the flood control project, touted as the ultimate answer to the worsening flood problem in the low-lying areas of Caloocan, Malabon, Navotas and Valenzuela.

“The residents are tired of (DPWH) promises to finish the project on a certain date. The project has been delayed for more than three years, it would be better if they just do their job to finish it soon,” Padua told The STAR.

Engineer Macariola Bartolo, head of the P5.18-billion Camanava flood control project, earlier said the project is close to 99 percent complete and would be ready for the La Niña weather phenomenon, which brings higher than normal rainfall, in the next three months.

Bartolo said they have to finish the North Catmon drainage in order to complete the project. She said the floodwater in Barangay Catmon is now around one foot deep, compared to around two and a half feet before the project was done.

Malabon assistant city engineer Ruth Senaida, a resident of Barangay Catmon, said a large part of their village, particularly Sitio Gulayan, is still submerged in floodwaters.

“The project is still ongoing so we could not still see how effective it is. We could only appreciate its effectiveness once it is finished,” Senaida said.

The Camanava flood control project, started in 2003, and was supposed to be finished in 2007 but the completion was delayed for various reasons, primarily over right of way acquisitions, Bartolo said.

Last month, Bartolo said they would “finally” finish the project on Sept. 30 but they failed to meet their self-imposed deadline anew. She said the local contractor asked for a one-month extension, which ends on Oct. 31.