It is a welcome development that mayors of different local units in Cebu met together early this week to discuss a common problem of urban flooding.
The summit took up efforts to solve flooding in Metro Cebu, a problem that affects cities of Cebu, Mandaue and Talisay. The mayors of the three cities were very vigorous in trying to come up with a feasible solution.
Mega Cebu engineer Fortunato “Jun” Sanchez presented some possible short-term and long-term solutions. For the short term, steps include clearing our rivers of obstructions like informal settlers who live by the river banks and build there, dredging silted rivers starting from downstream going up, requiring residences and business establishments to put up cisterns to store rain water.
The long-term solution of putting up a dam would ultimately solve flooding but this option would cost so much.
I remember Sanchez discussing in one of the 888 News Forums how faulty engineering is one of the factors urban flooding can’t be solved. Solutions are provided by politicians without consulting technical experts like engineers who are in the best position to guide what to do.
Politicians put up projects that are not really the best solution to the problem. He presented the example of Mandaue City where drainage was improved after bigger culverts were laid in the area near Rolling Hills funeral home. And yet when it rained hard, there was still flooding in the area due to lack of coordination with experts and proper research as to the source of the water.
Constructing a dam requires the assistance of the national government but other aproaches can still be done by the local government.
The Cebu City council junked the budget proposal to lease or buy dredging equipment because the council, especially the Bando Osmeña-Pundok Kauswagan bloc said that this is not the solution.
They forget dredging our silted rivers is one of the solutions submitted by Engineer Sanchez.
While it may not be the best solution, it could mitigate flooding in the city. I hope the majority in the council would be able to see and provide solutions without much partisan politics getting in the way because the people, the innocent ones end up suffering.
I am hoping that they will be more sober and contribute solutions instead of just opposing for the mere purpose of opposing only because the mayor doesn’t belong to their party.
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