Senator Sherwin Gatchalian said they are considering removing the P270 billion proposed budget of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) for flood control projects next year and transferring it to the education sector.

The Senate finance committee pointed out that there are “red flags” in the proposed 2026 budget, with some flood control projects being duplicated, repetitive, and having exactly similar allocations.

“Ang sentiment ng senators is ‘wag mag-approve ng ghost projects, ‘wag mag-approve ng mga projects na anomalous at may red flags—-’yun ang general sentiment. So with that, general sentiment din nila na ilipat na lang itong P270 [billion],” Gatchalian said in an interview.

“Generally, ang sinasabi nila na itong flood control eh nakaka-dismaya at dapat ‘wag maulit,” he added.

At the Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC) briefing in the Senate on Tuesday, several senators flagged some infrastructure projects under the proposed 2026 National Expenditure Program (NEP) for having identical allotments.

Gatchalian said that if the P270 billion proposed budget for flood control projects were to be transferred to the education sector, the country would be able to finally reach the 4% gross domestic product (GDP) benchmark on education spending, as recommended by international organizations.

He, however, emphasized that the Senate’s decision will still depend on the ongoing review by the DPWH and the Department of Budget and Management (DBM).

“Kung maaayos naman, halimbawa, justified na, meron nang feasibility study, may detailed engineering na, wala na ‘yung mga duplications, then potentially ‘yung budget nila pwede ma-retain. So, it really depends kung ano ang ire-resubmit nila sa Kongreso at Senado,” the senator explained.