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Metro Pacific Water (MPW) has fully restored the 30 million liter per day (MLD) capacity of San Jose del Monte in Bulacan, following the removal of accumulated sludge in the treatment facility.

The company, through Metro Pacific Bulacan Water (MPBW), said it had conducted a cleaning operation at its water treatment facility in San Jose del Monte following its takeover of operations from PrimeWater Infrastructure Corp.

Water Treatment Plant 2 was designed to produce 30 MLD but is currently being operated at levels reaching 40 MLD. It noted that accumulated sludge and maintenance issues had significantly reduced the tank’s usable capacity to only 20 MLD.

The company reported that full production has resumed after the cleaning works, enabling the facility to supply about 10,000 households in the higher-elevation areas.

‘We cannot solve San Jose del Monte’s water problems overnight. Years of stopgap measures and deferred maintenance contributed to the condition of the system we inherited,’ MPBW COO Roldan Pineda said.

MPW has assumed interim water service operation for San Jose del Monte after the town’s local government canceled its water service agreement with PrimeWater due to alleged neglect and water shortages.

‘We learned that in the past that the previous operator would simply stop the production when raw water conditions became difficult. Our approach is to keep the plant operating safely and consistently by improving treatment processes and rehabilitating critical equipment,’ Pineda said.

The company reported that the raw water tank was last cleaned in December 2024, noting that these facilities must be cleaned at least twice a year to prevent sludge buildup from reducing storage and treatment capacity.

Despite the full restoration of water capacity, some areas in higher elevations may continue to experience low pressure or intermittent supply due to lack of sufficient volumes to meet demand.

‘This is why treatment facilities, the distribution network and available water sources all have to be improved together. That rehabilitation takes time, but we are working on these areas simultaneously,’ Pineda added.

MPBW has also completed the repair of over 400 pipeline leaks, reducing water losses from damaged lines and improving available supply.

The government is planning to build underground cisterns at 30 sites in Metro Manila as part of its efforts to establish long-term solutions to flooding, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said on Wednesday evening, August 19.

Marcos announced the plan in a press statement at the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) command center in Pasig after conducting a situation briefing with concerned government agencies about the impact of weeks-long southwest monsoon rains, or habagat.

He said the effects of the habagat rains were ‘severe and widespread,’ so the government has tapped the help of experts from the Netherlands to determine potential solutions, such as establishing underground cisterns to store floodwaters beneath existing facilities.

‘Maghuhukay tayo sa ilalim ng mga existing facilities. Halimbawa, ‘yung mga football fields, ‘yung mga open fields, kahit na may building puwede namang hukayin ‘yun,’ Marcos said. (We will dig under existing facilities. For example, football fields, open fields, and we can dig even under buildings.)

Some of the identified areas are Rajah Sulayman, Rizal Memorial, Camp Aguinaldo and the University of Santo Tomas.

‘Within this month, matatapos na ‘yung detailed engineering. ‘Pag natapos na ‘yung detailed engineering, titingnan namin, ipa-prioritize na namin, sisimulan na namin ang paghukay,’ Marcos said.

(Within this month, the detailed engineering will be finished. Once it’s done, we will look into it, we will prioritize this, and we will start the digging work.)

The government is currently discussing the plan with local government units of the identified areas, according to the president.

Impact of water management works

Meanwhile, Marcos reported that the water management actions undertaken by the government in the past six to seven months have helped curb the recent flooding.

‘Nakita natin may mga lugar na talaga namang tinamaan pa rin ng baha pero mas bawas na. Kung dati ay two storeys ang baha, ngayon siguro hanggang tuhod na lang. ‘Yung iba hindi na nabah,’ Marcos said.

(We saw that some areas were still affected by flooding, but the flooding was reduced. The floodwater used to reach two storeys, but now it only reaches knee level. Other areas were no longer affected.)

He added that the floods subsided faster because of expanded drainage systems, continuous dredging, and the 73 pumping stations and 11 mobile pumping equipment that were used to remove floodwaters in affected areas.

Several areas in Metro Manila and nearby provinces have been swamped due to continuous heavy rains since last week.

On August 17, 201.7 millimeters of rainfall were recorded within five hours, causing up to chest-deep flooding in some low-lying areas.

Reusing floodwaters

Marcos said the government is also exploring ways to reuse the water that will be collected by the planned underground floodwater storage.

‘Sabi ko pag-aralan natin na imbes na itapon ‘yung tubig sa dagat ay sana makahanap tayo ng sistema. Gagawa tayo ng sistema para kung anuman ‘yung nakolekta na tubig ay magamit din,’ Marcos said.

The president suggested reusing the collected floodwaters for household, irrigation and industrial use, noting that the amount of rain that fell on August 17 is equivalent to 50,000 Olympic-size swimming pools.

Gilas Pilipinas will head to the quarterfinal round of the FIBA U18 Asia Cup after pulling away from Syria, 72-63, in their qualification to the quarters clash Thursday afternoon at the Veer Savarkar Indoor Stadium in India.

The Gilas boys will now face China in the quarterfinal round of the tourney.

George Aidan Green top-scored for the Philippines with 18 points, three rebounds, two assists, two steals and a block, while JB Cagurungan had 12 points. Lino Tubongbanua Jr. added 10 markers for the Filipino dribblers.

The game was tight at the half, with a late triple by Tubongbanua making it a 32-31 lead by Gilas after the first 20 minutes of play.

In the third quarter, the two teams were still kept in a close match, before Gilas took a 42-44 disadvantage with 1:32 remaining in the frame to a 51-44 lead heading to the fourth following a Cagurungan trey.

Syria, though, did not go down without a fight. They sliced the deficit to two, 49-51, after a layup by Majak Awutiak Majak, before the Philippines answered with an 8-0 run to make it a double digit advantage, 59-49, with 7:04 left.

The Syrians then made it a four-point game, 58-62, with 3:03 to go, before seven straight points by Ethan Aguas, Tubongbanua and Green pushed Gilas ahead to an insurmountable 69-58 lead with 1:41 left.

And while Taym Aldassouki, Yehia Kassas and Majak tried to mount a comeback for Syria, finishing touches by Luke Atacador and Patrick Pasinos iced the game.

Aguas and Atacador produced eight points apiece for Gilas.

Majak powered Syrua with 20 points, 13 rebounds, two steals and two blocks. Aldassouki and Kassas had 15 and 14 markers, respectively, for the losing team, which was sent to the classification round.

The matchup between the Philippines and China will be on Friday at the same venue.

It was another early exit for Team Secret as it fell to Japan’s Onside Gaming, 0-2, in the VCT Pacific Stage 2 Play-ins. The team thus ended up at the bottom of the standings once again with a 13th-16th-place finish.

The revamped squad entered the second half of the Valorant esports season with high hopes after retaining Filipino standouts Kelly “kellyS” Sedillo and Jhian “Zeus” Vega, while adding Indonesian player Jonathan “natz” Adiputra and Singaporean Tidus “STYRON” Goh under new head coach Peter “Spin” Bradford.

The squad scored a breakthrough victory by stunning South Korea’s KRX and appeared to be on the rise. The momentum could not be sustained, however, as the team suffered back-to-back-to-back losses to T1, Paper Rex and DFM to fall into the play-ins in its bid to reach the Stage 2 playoffs.

Opening its play-in campaign, Team Secret showed signs of life as it swept Xipto Esports, 2-0, but was once again sent to the lower bracket, this time by South Korea’s Nongshim RedForce.

With tournament life on the line, Team Secret could not afford any mistakes against Onside Gaming. The team, however, failed to capitalize on its map pick of Ascent and, although Split went down to the wire, it was Onside Gaming that delivered the final blow to another disappointing season for Team Secret.

After the loss, Bradford admitted that taking over the roster midway through the season and implementing major changes were always going to be a difficult task.

“I’ll be honest, when I took the job, I knew it was going to be difficult. You’re making sweeping changes to the structure of the team deep into the season. It’s never going to be easy to do that,” said Bradford in the post-match press conference.

Despite arriving with optimism, the Team Secret coach revealed that mentality issues within the squad proved to be one of the biggest obstacles throughout the campaign.

“There’s been a lot of mentality issues throughout the whole organization, to be honest. There’s been an attitude of give up and go next. I’ve mentioned this before in interviews and I’ve been battling against that since the beginning,” said Bradford.

The British coach believed the team’s repeated setbacks only reinforced a lack of confidence within the roster.

“I honestly believe that as a five, as a six, me included, there just wasn’t enough belief that we could actually do this. As soon as we started being faced with some evidence that, ‘oh no, we actually suck,’ the heads drop and we give up,” said Bradford.

He stressed that Team Secret’s shortcomings were not due to a lack of firepower, pointing to the performances of his players throughout the season.

“Look at Zeus. The guy’s unbelievable. We played against Nongshim, he drops like 30 frags and we can’t close out a game. It’s just sad,” said Bradford.

“Every player in our team is capable of doing those things. It’s just the fundamental team play that’s lacking,” he added.

The remaining Filipinos in the tournament – Adrian “invy” Reyes of Paper Rex and Global Esports teammates Xavier “xavi8k” Juan and Patrick “PatMen” Mendoza – await their opponents after qualifying directly for the playoffs, which begin on August 26.

The peso came close to breaching the 62-per-dollar level yesterday as renewed geopolitical tensions and rising crude oil prices drove investors toward the safe-haven dollar, although the local currency recovered some ground before the close.

Data from the Bankers Association of the Philippines showed the peso closed at 61.815 per dollar yesterday, weaker by three centavos from Tuesday’s 61.785 finish.

The local currency opened at 61.85 and declined to 61.995, its weakest level on record, before recovering toward the close. Despite the renewed pressure, Wednesday’s finish remained stronger than the record closing low of 61.847 per dollar recorded on July 24.

Trading activity picked up sharply, with total volume jumping by 41.3 percent to $1.89 billion from $1.34 billion in the previous session.

A trader said the peso’s move toward 62 reflected renewed demand for safe-haven assets after a temporary agreement between the United States and Iran expired, reviving concerns over the Middle East conflict.

The trader said the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas could consider intervening if the exchange rate reaches the 62 level, although a breach is not yet seen as imminent given heightened uncertainty ahead of the BSP’s upcoming policy decision on Aug. 27.

Jonathan Ravelas, senior adviser at Reyes Tacandong and Co., said investors were also positioning ahead of the release of the minutes of the US Federal Reserve’s latest meeting as they looked for clues on the future direction of interest rates.

‘The dollar is stronger today for two reasons: first, investors are positioning ahead of the Fed minutes, hoping for guidance on the interest rate outlook. Second, lingering geopolitical uncertainty in the Middle East is encouraging a flight to safety,’ Ravelas said.

‘In uncertain times, the dollar remains the world’s preferred safe-haven currency,’ he added.

Ravelas expects the peso to trade between 61.60 and 62 per dollar in the near term.

UnionBank chief economist Ruben Carlo Asuncion likewise said the latest weakness of the peso was mainly being driven by external factors, including higher oil prices, geopolitical tensions and sustained strength in the dollar.

Asuncion noted that the Philippines’ dependence on imported oil makes the currency particularly sensitive to increases in global energy prices.

Asuncion said the peso’s near-term direction would continue to depend heavily on movements in crude oil prices, developments in the Middle East and the strength of the dollar.

‘If these external pressures persist, the peso could remain under pressure near current levels,’ Asuncion said.

Instead of waiting for a comprehensive national flood control and drainage master plan, the Department of Public Works and Highways will implement localized drainage master plans in direct consultation with city and municipal mayors to address Metro Manila’s broader flood crisis, DPWH Secretary Vince Dizon said.

In an interview with reporters during an inspection of flood control projects in Navotas City Tuesday morning, Dizon cited the case of the Navotas local government where direct coordination with Mayor John Rey Tiangco led to the immediate repair of six non-functioning pumping stations and the closure of coastal dike gaps.

To address recurring overflows along the San Juan River basin, Dizon announced that the DPWH will construct a network of flood-retarding basins across Quezon City under its 2027 budget submission.

These retention basins will temporarily hold back mountain and urban runoff during peak downpours before slowly releasing water into the river system.

‘Almost all stormwater from Quezon City empties into the San Juan River, which eventually overwhelms it,’ Dizon explained. ‘By constructing retarding basins, we create a temporary buffer so runoff doesn’t hit the river all at once. In the past, the DPWH didn’t even consult mayors. Now we are building engineering solutions based on actual ground reality.’

Under the revised procurement and budgeting guidelines, Dizon declared that no project will be submitted to Congress unless it possesses a comprehensive master plan, an engineered design, mandatory feasibility studies and formal endorsements from both the Local Development Council (LDC) and the Regional Development Council (RDC).

‘If a project lacks even one of these five requirements, it will not enter the budget – period,’ Dizon warned. ‘This is one of our key safeguards so that past abuses won’t happen again. Previously, entries consisted merely of a project title and an arbitrary cost – meaning those figures were simply invented without any engineering studies on paper.’

He added that under the new system, local chief executives will no longer be caught off guard by unvetted projects in their localities, as LDC and RDC clearances are now strictly required.

He outlined the primary target zones for the proposed 2027 flood management budget, prioritizing major river basins and low-lying coastal catchment areas nationwide.

Key priority locations include the Pampanga and Bulacan River Basins in Central Luzon; low-lying coastal municipalities in Cavite such as Kawit, Noveleta, Bacoor and Imus; the Bicol River Basin covering Naga City and Camarines Sur; Metro Cebu; Bacolod City; the Davao Region; Central Mindanao and Cagayan de Oro and Iligan in Northern Mindanao.

Support

Amid renewed calls for a comprehensive drainage master plan, several lawmakers quickly expressed their support for the proposal.

Parañaque Rep. Brian Yamsuan said he is open to allocating funds for the implementation of a Metro Manila drainage master plan, citing the urgency following recent flooding brought by heavy monsoon rains.

Echoing Yamsuan, the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) also hopes to push for the comprehensive drainage master plan to be included in the General Appropriations Act.

‘We’ll take an active role to fund this drainage master plan in Metro Manila this year so we can implement it as soon as possible,’ MMDA Chairman Don Artes said.

The government, according to Artes, could initially limit the funding request to a feasibility study to determine the scale of the drainage system, elevation requirements and interconnectivity.

The MMDA said such an approach would require less funding than preparing a complete plan down to the detailed engineering design.

Sen. Panfilo Lacson, meanwhile, urged the DPWH to ensure that the country’s flood control master plan would continue beyond the current administration.

‘There should be continuity and the master plan should be multi-administration in scope. It must be designed to cross administrations,’ Lacson said over radio dzBB. ‘Minor modifications can be made over time to adapt to new situations, but the core of the basic plan must remain.’

The DPWH, under Dizon, is crafting a more comprehensive flood control master plan by integrating local flood control plans covering the country’s major river basins and flood-prone areas.

Under the proposed 2027 spending plan, the DPWH was allotted P644 billion, up from its current P530.9 billion allocation, with P107.4 billion proposed for its flood control management program.

Clearing operations

Beyond long-term infrastructure planning, the DPWH has also mobilized district engineering offices nationwide for aggressive road maintenance and pothole patching operations following days of continuous rains that damaged major thoroughfares.

Maintenance teams have been deployed to apply cold-mix and hot-mix asphalt overlays on high-traffic corridors in Metro Manila, Central Luzon, Calabarzon, the Bicol Region and parts of the Visayas and Mindanao that were hit hardest by recent downpours.

DPWH field units are also clearing clogged road drains, side gutters and culverts to prevent water pooling that causes recurring pavement damage.

According to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources-NCR, up to 1,255 sacks of mixed solid waste were collected on Tuesday across 27 cleanup sites by Estero Rangers, River Warriors and partner organizations.

The MMDA, for its part, has collected between 25 and 27 truckloads of garbage along EDSA after Monday’s flooding.

Amid these efforts, government officials urged the public to practice proper waste management, prevent garbage from reaching waterways and not to point fingers at one another.

‘The provincial government is not neglecting its responsibilities. We are conducting dredging,’ Bulacan, Gov. Daniel Fernando said as he blamed high tide and garbage for the recurring flooding during an interview on ‘Storycon’ in One News.

‘We are doing our duty… So let’s not point fingers at one another. Everyone is doing their part here,’ he added.

Malacañang yesterday expressed readiness to disclose details on the foreign trips of executive branch officials after Vice President Sara Duterte challenged the administration to make public all of its travel authorities and the public funds involved.

At a media briefing, Palace press officer Claire Castro said there have been reports about the overseas trips of President Marcos, who also grants interviews to reporters who cover him.

‘You can see what is happening in the foreign trips, official visits, working visits of the President. They are not hidden,’ she said.

Castro added that the expenses of the President’s trips are not being concealed.

‘They can be accessed and they are reported to the COA (Commission on Audit),’ she said.

Asked if ordinary citizens would be provided with details about the travel expenses of officials, Castro replied: ‘It depends on the purpose. If it is reported, it is not hidden… These are provided, especially to the COA, which is very strict, but the President never threatened it. The COA is free to conduct audits.’

On Tuesday, Malacañang officials confirmed that Duterte had sought a travel authority for a six-day personal trip to Japan.

The travel authority issued by the Palace covered Duterte’s visit to the East Asian country from Aug. 19 to 24.

Castro then revealed that Duterte had sought the cancelation of her travel authority.

She provided the media a copy of the Office of the Vice President’s letter on the cancellation of the foreign travel.

The Office of the Ombudsman has issued subpoenas to the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) and several other government agencies to compel the turnover of records concerning illegal reclamation projects along the Taguig City portion of Laguna de Bay, Sen. Panfilo Lacson revealed yesterday.

In an interview on dzBB, Lacson said the ombudsman’s fact-finding investigation is actively underway, aided by additional documents, titles and witnesses provided by his office, as well as drone surveillance footage submitted by the Philippine Reclamation Authority (PRA).

He said the subpoenas were issued to the DPWH, PRA, the Land Registration Authority and the Taguig City Registry of Deeds.

‘We have already sent 10 title numbers and they need to see who these were titled to,’ Lacson said.

He clarified that while the ombudsman is the lead investigative body, his office continues to support the case by turning over leads from whistle-blowers.

The ombudsman’s probe currently covers eight reclamation sites along the Taguig side of the lake, according to him. Of these, only one has been completed, while the seven others – some dating back to 2007 – are ongoing without the required permits.

Citing data provided by the PRA, Lacson said the unauthorized reclamation activities cover an aggregate area of at least 85 hectares.

The PRA is currently preparing to initiate forfeiture proceedings to recover the 85 hectares of reclaimed land in favor of the national government, pending the formal passage of a board resolution.

Beyond the issue of legality, Lacson warned that the massive unauthorized dumping threatens the ecological health and carrying capacity of the critical body of water.

The Philippines is sending not just one, but two world jiu-jitsu champions in next month’s Asian Games in Nagoya, Japan.

The battle-scarred Annie Ramirez and Kimberly Custodio, who pocketed their third and fourth world title in Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates, respectively, early this month, will lead the 15-strong squad eyeing nothing but Asiad glory.

The 35-year-old Ramirez is bent on snaring her second gold in a row in the quadrennial meet after reigning supreme in Hangzhou, China three years ago.

But she would have to change weight classes and go down from her original weight class at-57 kilograms to -52kg where countrywoman Kaila Napolis is also competing.

Same with the 39-year-old Custodio, who will go up to -48kg from -45kg where she was untouchable in Abu Dhabi.

Interestingly, however, for Custodio, while already decorated, the Nagoya joust will be her debut Asiad and she hopes to make it memorable the way she did when she had a smashing Southeast Asian Games debut last year in Thailand where she struck gold.

She will compete with teammate Jollrin Gonzales Co in the same division.

Alexandria Luz Enriquez, who snared the Asian Beach Games gold in Sanya, China last April, is also wading into the battle in the women’s 63kg alongside Andrea Lois Lao.

Also waging war in Nagoya are Myron Myles Mangubat and Santino Luis Luzuriaga (-62kg), Marc Alexander Lim and Yman Xavier Baluyo (-69kg), Antonio Luigi Dy and Mark Constance Vergel (-77kg), Vito Luis Luzuriaga and David Miranda (-85kg), and Romeo John Arellano (-94kg).

The Filipinos scooped up two mints and a bronze in Hangzhou, and expect them to eclipse it in Nagoya.

The Bacoor Strikers have entered the fast-growing world of pickleball, forming a team to carry the city’s name in the competitive scene.

Enlisted as Team A players are Ricarte Santos, Vince EJ Tugade, Christy Sanosa, and Princess Lorben Marie Catindig. In Team B are Laurenz Quitara, Kent Octavo, Elise Marie Geluz, Leykie Lei Sanosa and Claro Castillo.

Mayor Strike Revilla, the team owner, signed the players to contracts in a ceremony at the Revilla Hall, Bacoor Government Center, in the presence of Vice Mayor Rowena Bautista Mendiola and Councilor Karen Evaristo.

As team owner, Revilla reaffirmed his full support and commitment to the Bacoor Strikers, emphasizing the importance of creating opportunities for athletes to compete and represent Bacoor with pride.