Actress Bela Padilla called out Pangasinan 2nd District Rep. Mark Cojuangco over his controversial comments on communities severely affected by the flooding caused by Typhoon Tino.
In a reply on X, Bela told the lawmaker, “Respectfully, you don’t start giving swimming lessons to a drowning man, sir. You save him first.”
“Why didn’t the LGUs stop them from building there in the first place? Common folk don’t know where they can or can’t build. I mean-look at Slater Young,” she added, referencing the recent controversy with Young’s hillside development project in Cebu, “The Rise at Monterrazas.”
Respectfully, you don’t start giving swimming lessons to a drowning man, sir. You save him first.
— Bela (@bb_belaaa) November 10, 2025
Why didn’t the LGUs stop them from building there in the first place? Common folk don’t know where they can or can’t build. I mean-look at Slater Young. https://t.co/ZBO1U9jVhI
The statement was in response to Conjuangco’s reply to a TikTok video shared on X, which showed several families submerged in floodwaters.
In a reply, Cojuangco said, “Bakit kasi sa flood plain gumawa ng tirahan? Takaw sakuna.”
Netizens were quick to criticize the lawmaker’s response, describing him as “out of touch” and “disrespectful” for claiming that residents who live in flood-prone areas always have a choice.
One user wrote, “They had no choice! Also let's start with the fact na hindi ho normal sa Cebu ang bahain nang ganyan.”
“With all due respect, Cong., the question shouldn't be “why do they still stay in flood plains?” but rather, “why can they not stay in places that aren’t flood plains?” and “what I, as the congressman, can do about it?” another user wrote.
Despite the backlash, the lawmaker doubled down, stating that the disaster could have been avoided if residents had not built their homes in hazardous areas. Cojuangco clarified that he only pointed it out to prevent it in the future, adding that building homes in such places is “very deadly.”
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. declared a one-year state of calamity on Monday, after Typhoon Tino battered Visayas and Mindanao. According to reports, the typhoon claimed 224 lives, with 158 fatalities recorded in Cebu.
