Manila, Philippines – During the ongoing Senate hearings on the 2026 proposed budget of the National Irrigation Administration (NIA), which has a total fund of P54.79 billion.
Senator Raffy Tulfo questioned the apparent ease which NIA’s irrigation projects are crumbling in certain areas, as well as projects that remain unfinished.
In a presentation shown by the Senator, he specifically highlighted the holes and cracks in parts of the Bulo Small River Irrigation Project in Bulacan.
He also pointed out the Maclelon Small Reservoir Irrigation Project in Brgy. Vista Hermoza, Macalelon, Quezon, and the Balog-Balog Multipurpose Project Phase II in Tarlac City.
The video shows the Senator’s office inspection in 2022, 2023, 2024, and up to 2025, where the damaged parts seemed to have been patched rapidly and quickly worn out again.
The NIA defended the projects through Senator Kiko Pangilinan, claiming that the damage observed at the Bulo reservoir was caused by Super Typhoon Carding, which reached Signal No. 4 and left the Bulo project with severe damage.
However, Senator Tulfo said that NIA should also be aware that the provinces where these irrigation systems are built are often hit by strong typhoons, and thus they should know to use more durable materials in these areas.
Despite this, the NIA emphasized that the damages shown around the Bulo reservoir were not merely patched and they used steel casement in these areas.
The agency also expressed willingness to conduct an internal investigation and visit the Bulo irrigation site to identify the issues personally and collect information, which they said would be immediately submitted to Senator Tulfo’s office.
Meanwhile, Senator Tulfo challenged NIA Administrator Engineer Eddie Guillen to resign if it is proven that the holes in Bulo were patched haphazardly.
Meanwhile, it should be noted that the requested NIA budget for 2026 focuses on the construction, rehabilitation, and monitoring systems of irrigation projects nationwide.