It is often echoed in medicine that prevention is better than cure. Take your vitamins to strengthen your immune system, get your shots before flu season hits, and do your best to commit to routine checkups to catch any lingering illnesses. Despite the brevity in this saying, the Philippines has long failed to apply it in practice, especially evident as storms relentlessly batter the country. 

It is a constant cycle where the Filipino people suffer the impact from the revolving door of typhoons that hit the nation, afterwards calling on elected politicians to usher in measures to prevent the well-known catastrophic effects. Emphasizing the term “well-known”, as the Philippines has time and time again faced these effects. 

Waist-deep flooded streets, disrupted infrastructure and transportation systems, devastated agricultural goods, the threat of landslides, and most harrowingly, the loss of life. Yet promises are made to mitigate these disastrous effects, these “preventive measures” are supposedly to be implemented, for as long as you vote for the vying politician who preys on the unfortunate who yearn to be safe from calamity. 

One effect in question that dominates the news cycle every year is the threat of flooding. In every corner of the country, in every province and city, and even in our very own capital, Manila, citizens face wave after wave. The nation lies in an area prone to receiving typhoons, but despite this well-known fact, it is a never-ending cycle of drudgery. It is not a question of “if” a flood breaks out, but a question of “when”. 

Instead of investing in preventive measures such as those imposed by nations such as Japan and The Netherlands, the government sets forth a reactive stance on damage control. Logical solutions would be the construction of flood control systems, especially in areas near rivers and other bodies of waters. Even efforts towards renovating or cleaning drainage systems that are often clogged with trash would be a considerable effort towards preventing floods. 

Moreso, President Ferdinand Bongbong Marcos slashed P16.7 billion worth of flood control projects in the 2025 budget, which includes the construction and maintenance of flood mitigation structures and drainage systems. Inventive solutions, such as the construction of rain-water collectors and rehabilitation of sewers were also cut. Notably, the President rejected over P7 billion of flood control projects in Central Luzon, the highest investment in the 2025 budget.

Justification on these cuts, as well as other cuts in other departments, would come from the Department of Budget and Management Undersecretary Goddes Libiran, who would go on to state that these projects were not aligned with the current administration’s Build Better More infrastructure program. Even more controversial would be the President’s claim that the country has flood control systems, but they were supposedly “overwhelmed”.

With such justification and comments from this administration, it again highlights the elected government’s lack of attention towards crises which have plagued the Philippines for decades. It is such a blatant disregard of a problem that strikes the nation multiple times in a year. It is questionable if the government, both past and present, are actually seeing the bodies buried under the wades of water that thrash upon the streets of our cities. 

Instead, they choose to be reactive. When calamity strikes, they deploy their boats and other amphibious emergency vehicles, employ under-equipped rescue teams, and send out donations of cash, rice, and canned goods. It is not to demean those who risk their lives to help those in need, but it is that very risk that can be prevented if meaningful efforts were made in solving this issue. Cash, rice, and canned goods are short-term solutions, and are meaningless when your home is washed away by the current. 

Further, resiliency is not the key. Often promoted with pride as a Filipino trait, it highlights the idea wherein the Filipino must simply “get over it”, taking beating after beating and simply rising up to the occasion. It is a trait which has been romanticized, impacting the social consciousness of the people and promoting self-reliance rather than what the people rightfully deserve, which is a government that serves and protects the people from impending danger to the best of its ability. Decidingly so, the efforts of this administration refutes this responsibility, repeating past administration’s mistakes in providing the bare minimum of aid, and in essence, short-term solutions.

In the end, the government’s responses are band-aid solutions that they tout as the “cure” to the woes of the rainy season, despite this supposed solution being shown to be painstakingly ineffective. The bigger problem—the greatest problem lies with the priorities of the government, and their outright refusal to invest in the safety and wellbeing of the Filipino people. It also lies upon the Filipino people, who tend to appreciate these short-term solutions rather than demanding for proactive measures that would not only prevent flooding, but help prevent the consequences of unpreparedness. 

Ultimately, it begs the question: when will the lesson be learned?