15/11/2025
Gov. Baricuatro Orders Inclusion of Provincewide Integrated Water Management System in RDC Agenda
Cebu Governor Pam S. Baricuatro, the newly appointed Chairperson of the Regional Development Council (RDC) in Central Visayas, has directed the RDC Infrastructure Committee to prioritize the inclusion of an Integrated Water Management System for the entire Province of Cebu.
Governor Baricuatro said the measure will be formally tackled in the next RDC meeting, ahead of her November 26 meeting with President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. in Malacañang, where she intends to lobby the Council’s recommendation for national adoption and funding support.
The governor emphasized that the recent flash floods were a result of “an environmental explosion,” explaining that water from the Cebu watershed overwhelmed downstream towns—a tragedy she said could have been prevented had the Metro Cebu Integrated Flood Control and Drainage Master Plan been properly implemented.
"What happened to the Metro Cebu Integrated Flood Control & Drainage Master Plan? It was approved years ago with a clear promise to safeguard Cebu from disaster. If it was not executed, we must know why,” Governor Baricuatro said in a recent post.
She added that this was also brought up by President Marcos and Secretary Vince Dizon in a meeting at the Capitol last Friday with local mayors, where a commitment was made to work together for the plan’s implementation and to strengthen long-term resilience.
To ensure coordination and collaboration across sectors, Governor Baricuatro will convene a Stakeholders’ Summit and an Environmental Summit, bringing together LGUs, national agencies, and private partners for inter-LGU cooperation and unified implementation of the province-wide water management system.
“We will work with partners in the national government and the private sector to ensure urgent action and long-term resilience,” the governor said. | CAPITOL PIO
