The ongoing Senate Blue Ribbon and House infrastructure hearings on anomalous flood control projects are “losing sight of the real problem,” according to University of the Philippines Visayas (UPV) Chancellor Dr. Clement Camposano.
“We lost our sight. We are out of focus. We are too fixated on personalities and cases,” Camposano said in an interview with IMT NEWS, stressing that contractors alone could not have caused the nationwide flood control failures.
He cautioned lawmakers and the public that while blame is being hurled at contractors, the true drivers of flooding—climate change, poor urban planning, and systemic corruption—are being ignored.
“Because of climate change and sinking areas, floodwaters are reaching places never hit before. Unless we confront this, no investigation will solve our problem,” he explained.
Camposano said the only permanent solution is to start relocating communities living along coastlines, creeks, and other high-risk zones.
At the same time, he criticized the culture of politics that enables corruption: “It’s easy to blame politicians, but they don’t just write the rules—the people are often complicit.”
Camposano warned the current investigations risk becoming mere spectacle if they fail to deliver real reforms.
“If there are no changes in procurement laws and in the way politics operates, this will all end in nothing,” he stressed.
As a solution, he urged the creation of an independent truth commission—involving civil society, academia, and non-political institutions—to ensure credibility.
“If Congress investigates itself, it will never be a true investigation. We need a body outside politics, independent even from the President, if we want to get to the bottom of this, Camposano said.
“We should not lose focus. We need resilience, honesty, and courage to face this historic challenge,” he added.IMT
