From left: Soco, Tan, Joseph
Local businessmen warned of the dire effects of flooding on Cebu’s economy and urged government officials to act now or suffer worse consequences later.
Incoming Mandaue Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI) president Glenn Soco said the floods that affected areas in the cities of Cebu and Mandaue on Friday were already of “alarming proportions.”
“If the problem persists, it will have serious economic and social effects on business and the community,” he said in a text message.
At the height of Friday’s rain, floodwaters along A.S. Fortuna Street in Mandaue City reached waist-high levels or even higher and partially submerged big passenger vehicles.
Soco urged the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) to look into the viability of Metro Cebu’s drainage infrastructure.
In the meantime, he suggested that the government hold a consultative and planning conference with stakeholders to come up with appropriate measures to cope with the situation, eventually leading to long-term solutions.
MCCI past president Philip Tan, meanwhile, said the flooding problem in Metro Cebu might discourage investors conscious about where they put their money, shying away from flood-prone areas as these would cause inconvenience to human resources and even cause damage to property.
“Investors look for places with less possibility of flooding. (But) Flooding is present everywhere, given the climate change. Even the best cities in the world aren’t spared from flooding,” he said in a phone interview.
Tan, president and chairman of Wellmade Motors and Development Corp., cited the manufacturing industry as among the sectors that would be affected by constant flooding problems.
He said manufacturers would have difficulty transporting goods from one place to another due to traffic gridlocks caused by floods as well as face the risk of damage to their plants.
The Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) industry, one of the major economic drivers in Cebu and the whole region, will also suffer during floods, but not as much as production sectors, he added.
“We are talking about transport of people, not of goods. It might create inconvenience because people will be stranded because of the floodwater. This might affect the operations of the BPOs,” he said.
Tan called on the concerned local government leaders to work together to come up with a unified solution to the problem.
“We hope that things will change under the Duterte administration. We need that kind of leader to make things happen,” he said over the phone.
He also banked on Mandaue City Mayor Luigi Quisumbing’s firsthand knowledge as he is also a businessman and shares the sentiments of the business community.
Cebu Business Club President Gordon Alan “Dondi” Joseph added that the worsening flooding problem in the metropolitan area is a result of lack of political will and poorly designed flood projects.
He agreed that flooding is a great way to turn off investors, particularly those in the very crucial BPO sector.
“If we do not tackle flooding immediately, then expect Cebu to lose existing and potential investors,” he said.
Joseph added he received word that new Public Works Secretary Mark Villar might come to Cebu next week at the invitation of Presidential Assistant for the Visayas Michael Dino to assess the situation.
He said Villar might also meet with Mega Cebu leaders and other stakeholders.
Mega Cebu – a consortium of government, private and civil society sector stakeholders that envisions sustained urban growth in Metro Cebu up to 2050 – is in the middle of conducting a comprehensive study on storm water and drainage management with the help of a group of recognized experts funded by the DPWH.