Water surged into a bus as floods hit the Philippine capital, leaving commuters with their feet barely touching the ground.
Footage captured by Jan Pauline Santos shows the deluge entering the vehicle along EDSA near Quezon Avenue in Manila amid heavy rainfall on August 30.
@jpaulinesantos #floodcontrolproject #floodproject #morefuninthephilippines ♬ Upuan (feat. Jeazell Grutas) – Gloc 9
Santos posted the video on TikTok, garnering 1.1 million views, 89,300 likes, over 3,000 saves and 977 comments so far.
“Thank you po sa flood control project niyo… Pati Carousel bus pinapasok na rin ng baha,” the text on the video read.
Santos also added hashtags: #floodcontrolproject, #floodproject, #morefuninthephilippines. She also used Gloc-9’s “Upuan” as background music, a song that symbolizes power, privilege and the struggles of ordinary Filipinos.
The Philippines and neighboring Southeast Asian countries are entering their annual monsoon season, marked by soaring temperatures followed by intense rainstorms.
The region’s low-lying geography, inadequate drainage systems, and rapid urbanisation make it especially vulnerable to flooding.
Limited infrastructure often struggles to handle the heavy rainfall, resulting in widespread flash floods.
President Ferdinand Marcos. Jr has ordered a full audit of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) flood control initiatives, along with lifestyle checks on officials and public disclosure of projects.
The directive came after reports of corruption, ghost projects, and disproportionate contract awards linked to flood control programs since 2022.
“I recently inspected the aftermath of typhoons Crising (Wipha), Dante (Francisco), Emong (Co-may), and the southwest monsoon. I saw that many flood control projects were poorly built and have collapsed, while others were simply imaginary,” Marcos said in Filipino.
Local media reported that more than 6,000 flood control projects worth P350 billion (approximately 4.9 billion GBP) lacked essential details, raising concerns over transparency in government infrastructure spending.
At least 15 contractors are now under investigation after cornering a combined P545 billion (approximately 7.63 billion GBP) program budget.
READ: Vico Sotto links Discayas to top flood control contractors
Meanwhile, public outrage has grown as residents criticised the families of those contractors, exposing their lavish lifestyles and condemning the misuse of public funds.
READ: Why your social media feed is flooded with ‘lifestyle checks’ | ‘Already working’: Pinoys join in the sarcasm as Edu Manzano pokes fun at contractors’ lavish lifestyles
(1 PHP = 0.013 GBP)
— Rosette Adel; Newsflare via Reuters Connect
