Why aren’t we angry yet?

Why aren't Filipinos more outraged by the chronic flooding that continues to plague the country despite years of spending and planning? On August 17, the Southwest Monsoon dumped a staggering 201.7 mm of rain in just five hours over Metro Manila, causing widespread flooding and forcing residents to navigate treacherous streets to avoid infection. Even though this wasn't as severe as the 2011 Ondoy disaster, the impact was still significant, leaving millions stranded and suffering.

Despite the government's investments amounting to around P1.939 trillion in flood control projects over the last ten to fifteen years, ordinary Filipinos are still expected to improvise their own passage through contaminated water. DPWH Secretary Vince Dizon acknowledges that there are no overnight solutions to our flooding problem, but the question remains: why are we still expected to adapt to failure?

One of the issues is the poor management of our rivers and the excessive garbage that clogs them. Nevertheless, Filipino professionals have proposed solutions such as constructing flood cisterns, detention ponds, and massive underground water catchment systems, similar to those in Japan and the Netherlands.

However, the main problem seems to lie in the government's inability to make long-term commitments to flood control. Projects must be institutionalized, so that they cannot be arbitrarily canceled or abandoned by subsequent administrations. Furthermore, Filipino resilience, while admirable, may be turning structural governance failures into personal endurance tests, diluting the collective rage that should be directed towards the government's failures.