FACT CHECK: Roque cites wrong data on Bicol flood control projects

During the recent onslaught of Severe Tropical Storm Kristine, former Palace spokesperson Harry Roque falsely claimed in a Facebook (FB) post that the Bicol Region had P9.4 billion for flood control projects in 2023.

STATEMENT

In an FB post on Oct. 24, Roque said:

“Bicol stay strong. 9.4 billion po ang flood control projects sa inyo noong 2023. (You had P9.4 billion budget for flood control in 2023.)”

Source: Harry Roque official Facebook page, Bicol stay strong…, Oct. 24, 2024

FACT

The 2023 General Appropriations Act (GAA) shows a total of P29.4 billion allocation to the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) for flood control projects in the Bicol Region, not P9.4 billion as Roque claimed.

In an interview with reporters on Oct. 25, Sen. Joel Villanueva cited the same figure from the national budget, belying Roque’s claim. He said:

“Hindi po totoo ‘yun kasi in 2023 sa DPWH alone P29.4 billion ang budget [for Bicol]. This year for Bicol Region ang budget for flood control ng DPWH ay P31.9 billion, so, 2023 and 2024 meron kang P61.42 billion na budget for flood control in Bicol Region.”

(That is not true because in 2023 DPWH alone had a P29.4 billion budget [for Bicol]. This year, for the Bicol Region, the budget of DPWH for flood control is P31.9 billion. So, from 2023 to 2024, there is a total of P61.42 billion budget for flood control in the Bicol Region.”

Source: Inquirer.net, Villanueva to DPWH: Where did P61.42-B flood control budget for Bicol go?, Oct. 25, 2024

Roque later posted a clarification, following Villanueva’s figures:

“The budget for flood control projects in Bicol from 2023 to 2024 is 61 BILLION PESOS… Bicolandia can count on this much support from their leaders! Wala pong politika diyan. Katotohanan lamang. (There is no politicking there. Just the truth.)”

Source: Harry Roque official Facebook page, Clarification sa sinabi kong 9.4 billion pesos, Oct. 26, 2024

Below is the breakdown of the Bicol Region’s flood control budget from 2023 to 2024:

On Oct. 8, Senate President Francis Escudero, who was a governor and congressman of Sorsogon in the Bicol Region, said that plenary discussions on the P6.35-trillion proposed national budget for 2025 will include a closer scrutiny of allocations for flood control projects to ensure accountability in the allocation and use of flood mitigation funds.

Editor’s note: This fact check was produced with the help of a journalism student of the University of Sto. Tomas as part of their internship at VERA Files.