I was born and raised in Bacolod City and that was my worst experience as far as flooding is concerned. I saw a lot of people soaked while walking because they have no choice but to endure the heavy rain so that they can reach their destination.

Bacolod City experienced a one of a kind heavy downpour earlier this June which caused flooding in the entire city. Some netizens posted on Facebook “Bacolod City Waterworld.” Others said the main streets were just like small river. 

A lot of motorists were also stalled due to flooding in the middle of the road. In fact I was one of those stranded for almost one hour waiting for the rain to stop and the water to subside because of the fear that my car will stall in the middle of the road.
I was born and raised in Bacolod City and that was my worst experience as far as flooding is concerned. I saw a lot of people soaked while walking because they have no choice but to endure the heavy rain so that they can reach their destination. Those photos of flooding posted on social media reminded me of Metro Manila. Decades ago I also experienced flooding in Metro Manila but I didn’t expect to experience the same here in Bacolod.
The recurrence of flooding in the city is a major concern that our public officials must take seriously. It cannot be taken lightly considering the huge number of informal settlers along the shorelines in the city who are most affected, specifically the underprivileged children who are living in the worst condition which they have no choice. They are suffering everytime there is heavy downpour and flooding.
A lot of Bacolodnons were asking if what happened to the multi-million flood control projects undertaken by the local government. Big culvert was even placed in the middle of the road along the New Government Center as part of the drainage project with the sole purpose of mitigating the water in case of heavy downpour. Despite that project, why is it that Bacolod still experiences flooding? Is the flood control not effective? Is there any flaw with the implementation of the flood control project? These are basic questions, and it is incumbent upon our public officials to explain to the public so that their side on the issue at hand can be heard.
The city government said that they have a flood control program in place. But Bacolodnons still experience flooding every time there is a heavy downpour. How effective really is the flood control mechanism of the city government of Bacolod? And how much is the cost of it? The people of Bacolod deserve to know./WDJ