Category: Philippines Daily Inquirer

The collective anger from ordinary citizens , taxpayers and flood ravaged communities is palpable. The massive plunder involving flood control projects is not merely an affront to public trust- it is an assault on the very dignity of the people. This is not the time for half-measures or empty promises. The demand is clear: those who have betrayed the nation’s trust must be jailed without bail, and justice must be swift and uncompromising.

The Independent Commission on Infrastructure (ICI) continues its ‘secret’ investigations, Newly minted Ombudsman Boying Remulla promised to charge more than 200 persons, hardworking DPWH secretary are discovering more and more ghost and substandard projects while filing left and right cases at the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) , Bureau of Customs (BOC) , Bureau of Immigration (BI), the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), the Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) and the Philippine Competition Commission (PCC),

But the public keenly awaits the filing of formal charges of plunder against those involved and the subsequent start of its trial. This would mean the automatic imprisonment without bail of the accused and the start of government’s efforts to recover the stolen money.

The open and public confessions of DPWH officials-Undersecretary Roberto Bernardo, Assistant Regional Director Henry Alcantara, District Engineer Brice Hernandez, in cahoots with 20 other officers from Bulacan’s first Engineering District-are deliberate acts that enabled the plunder of billions of pesos taxpayers’ money. All of them should be put behind bars ASAP. Add to this the network of alleged bagmen and favored contractors, including Wawao Builders, Discaya-owned St. Timothy, Syms Construction Trading, M3 Konstract Corporation, Amethyst Horizon Builders and Gen. Contractor and Development Corp., TopNotch Catalyst Builders Inc., IM Construction Corp., and others,

Let us be clear: those who orchestrated, facilitated, or profited from this grand theft deserve nothing less than imprisonment without bail. The gravity of the crime-the scale of public suffering inflicted-demands that these individuals face the full force of the law, with no opportunity for escape or influence-peddling. Of course ,only after undergoing due process.

The scandal does not end with DPWH officials and contractors. The accusations leveled by Bernardo , Alcantara and Hernandez against Senators Joel Villanueva, Jinggoy Estrada, Chiz Escudero, former House Appropriations Chair Zaldy Co and former House Speaker Martin Romualdez must be held to the same standard.

Jail without bail must apply to the highest echelons of power if the evidence warrants. No senator, congressman, or public official should be above the law, especially when the stakes are nothing less than the lives and welfare of millions of Filipinos.

The scale of the alleged plunder is staggering, with DPWH confirming more than 420 ghost projects nationwide , but what is even more shocking is the impunity with which these crimes have been committed. The Filipino people are tired of watching the powerful walk free after orchestrating grand heists against the nation. The law must be enforced without fear or favor. There can be no bail, no backdoor deals, no escapes through technicalities. Those implicated-whether DPWH officials, bagmen, contractors, or lawmakers-must be prosecuted to the fullest extent and jailed during the trial without bail.

The anti-plunder law exists for a reason. It is time for our justice system to prove that it is not just a paper tiger, but a true bulwark against corruption.

DPWH,QC solons ignored LGU’s Drainage Master Plan- wasted P17-B flood budget

In 2021, forward-thinking Mayor Joy Belmonte collaborated with specialists from the UP Resilience Institute and the NOAH Center to prepare a flood and drainage master plan (DMP), which the city would integrate with the national government’s efforts. This science-based and data-driven plan encompasses all 142 barangays in the city and incorporates the 44 tributaries and five major river systems that flow via its man-made drainage systems constructed by various government organizations, while also taking into account flooding issues from neighboring LGUs. The Quezon City flood and drainage master plan will only cost P24 billion. After that, it was sent to the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) to make sure it was in line with the national flood control plan.

Mayor Belmonte further urged her six district congressmen to advocate for national financing for this DMP through Congress and the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) to permanently safeguard Quezon City residents from recurring floods. However, her honest appeal to her district officials fell on deaf ears.

On Saturday, August 30, a stunning one-hour rainfall of 121 mms broke the Ondoy record set in 2009, flooding Districts 1, 3, and 4, and causing traffic to stop in numerous regions. This massive flooding highlighted the need of the city’s flood and drainage master plan.

After the recent ghost flood control scams in Bulacan broke out, it was discovered that DPWH had previously allotted to Quezon City initially 305 flood control projects worth P14 billion, and then upgraded to 331 projects for P17 billion. The sad and worst aspect is that none of these DPWH projects implemented by its first and second engineering district offices, adhered to the submitted city’s flood and drainage master plan.

Mayor Belmonte was naturally upset, as this happened under the watch of her six city congressmen. She lamented that the P17-billion DPWH budget would have nearly finished the city’s P24-billion science-based and data-driven flood and drainage master plan. She also said the lost money would have paid for the city’s backlog of 5,300 classrooms , more than 350 PhilHealth-accredited health clinics, and built more than 14,000 homes for informal settler families .

Quezon city engineers examined the actions of the DPWH first and second engineering district on these 331 flood control project. What the LGU engineers found are damning and precise: dozens of projects with incorrect or missing coordinates; identical contract sums repeated across different sites as if someone copied and pasted spreadsheets; multi-phased projects ballooning from dozens to scores of phases with no clear delineation; projects marked ‘complete’ despite being visibly incomplete. The Matalahib stream pumping station was built in a creek , and work continued even after LGU issued cease and desist orders . This shows how engineering common sense and LGU cooperation were ignored. Also, 35 ghost flood control projects were discovered along with hundreds more dubious projects worth billions of pesos.

Questions of collusion clearly prevailed over this entire system. There were patterns of corruption among contractors, the implementing agency (DPWH) and our representatives in Congress. Two city districts that are not flood prone obtained the highest flood control funds. Second District Rep. Ralph Tulfo was granted P1.137 billion in flood prevention projects, while Third District Rep. Franz Pumaren received P1.090 billion. Rep PM Vargas, the fifth district congressman, was granted P1.02 billion in his flood-prone region, whereas election loser Marvin Rillo, the fourth district congressman , tallied P1.007 billion. Rep. Marvic Co- Pilar from the sixth district, was allocated P 465.6 million, while Rep. Arjo Atayde from the first district, received P319.8 million for flood control projects. Atayde, PM Vargas, Co-Pilar, Pumaren and Rillo all disputed the charges of corruption related to flood control anomalies.

It is no wonder that Quezon City residents now feel misled and disappointed. The biggest blunder of the DPWH first and second engineering districts and the our congressmen is their purposeful failure to implement the city’s science-based and data-driven Flood and Drainage Master Plan (DMP) meant to permanently alleviate our yearly sufferings. DPWH and our elected solons disregarded everything, clearly for their own agenda and for hundreds of millions of reasons.

This waste of P17 billions of flood control projects is both an administrative embarrassment, poor governance; and a moral outrage. A scandal that raise national alarms. If PHP17 billion in Quezon City, the heart of Metro Manila-a sum large enough to transform lives-can be squandered on projects that do not exist, lack coordinates, or are simply sidewalk paint, our inefficient public procurement system was transformed into a platform for robbery and plunder of peoples’ tax money.

Mayor Belmonte, and her city engineers have done their share by documenting, inspecting, and publicly exposing these huge and shameful anomalies. . It is now up to national institutions-the ICI, the DPWH, the Ombudsman, the COA, and the President-to act quickly, visibly, and without fear or favor. Anything less will be a double betrayal: a breach of public trust by the DPWH public officers and lawmakers in Congress. Today, the flood drains of Quezon City are clogged not just with silt but with corruption of the DPWH engineering districts and our conniving elected legislators. We must unclog both. (next)

An outbreak of the African Swine Fever (ASF) has been confirmed in Silago town, Southern Leyte, affecting three barangays and prompting the local government to consider declaring a state of calamity.

Silago Mayor Lemuel Honor said the ASF outbreak has caused about P7 million in losses to the town’s swine industry.

‘We have imposed strict measures to stop the spread of ASF in our town,’ he said on Tuesday.

The first cases were detected in Barangay Laguma on Oct. 2, where 10 pigs tested positive and about 100 were culled. The virus later spread to Barangays Hingatungan and Imelda, with 21 pigs infected in Hingatungan – the town’s largest pig-raising area.

Pig and pork product movements have been banned from affected areas, with checkpoints, disinfection drives, and cleaning operations in place.

The municipal council is expected to declare a state of calamity on Thursday, Oct. 16, to access emergency funds for affected hog raisers.

ASF is a highly contagious viral disease that affects domestic and wild pigs. While harmless to humans, it is almost always fatal to infected pigs, with a mortality rate that can reach 100 percent. The disease has no cure or vaccine./coa

Kathryn Bernardo’s Most Influential Celebrity award drew criticism after netizens pointed out her lack of commentary on government corruption scandals despite her wide reach.

Bernardo, who received her Most Influential Celebrity trophy at the 11th EdukCircle awards, faced backlash on the internet as netizens claimed that the actress ‘didn’t use her platform’ to call out the ongoing corruption in the country amid many celebrities speaking up about it.

‘Been a fan of Kathryn for like a decade and this is the first time I will disagree with the award she received. Influential yet didn’t use her voice for what’s needed. You don’t deserve it, Kath,’ wrote one fan on X.

‘I’ll say it for the first time. She does not deserve any ounce of this award. I saw her acceptance speech on TikTok and she still hasn’t spoken about any issue this country faces right now. Nasa UPD ka pa man din, sis. Influence on things that really matter WHERE?!’ chimed in another netizen. In her acceptance speech, Bernardo highlighted the power of the youth in ‘fighting for what’s right.’

‘Salamat sa mga naniniwala and sana magtulungan tayong lahat, para maging maganda ang kinabukasan ng Pilipinas (Thank you to those who believed. I hope we will help each other for the future of the Philippines),’ she said in part.

Despite the actress’ absence and silence on the corruption anomalies, her family showed support to attendees of the nationwide protest against corruption on Sept. 21 by handing out food packs and bottled water to participants of the rally.

As of writing, Bernardo hasn’t addressed the backlash nor spoken up about the corruption issues in the Philippines. She is currently working on her first TV series with James Reid.

Meanwhile, Bernardo shares the Most Influential Celebrity award with Anne Curtis, Marian Rivera, and Dingdong Dantes.

Curtis was among the celebrities who joined the Sept. 21 protest against corruption among government officials and other personalities. She has consistently voiced her frustration on the alleged corruption.

Dantes, on the other hand, previously led a group of celebrities in a fun run in Makati as their way of protesting against the corruption in the country, which culminated in the Sept. 21 twin mass rallies.

At the time, Rivera reposted a post from the League of Filipino Actors (Aktor PH) on her Instagram story, a statement that shows support for the meaningful gathering of the people against corruption. /edv

The market regulation arm of Philippine Stock Exchange has lifted the involuntary suspension issued against Globalinks Securities and Stocks Inc. after three months, saying the stock brokerage house now had enough capital to continue operating.

In a memorandum on Tuesday, Capital Markets Integrity Corp. (CMIC) said it had received documents from Globalinks showing proof of capital infusion.

The suspension, which was imposed on July 9, was lifted on Tuesday.

Still, CMIC said Globalinks needed to ensure that it consistently followed the minimum capitalization requirement.

‘Should there be any subsequent findings showing that the above rules have been infringed by Globalinks, the proper disciplinary actions shall be meted out by CMIC to the trading participant,’ CMIC president Gerard Sanvictores said in their memorandum.

Acting Transportation Secretary Giovanni Lopez ordered on Monday the revocation of protocol license plates issued to officials of the Department of Transportation (DOTr) and its attached agencies.

In a memorandum order, Lopez said that while the Land Transportation Office (LTO) is reviewing Joint Administrative Order No. 2024-001, ‘all previously-issued authorization to use protocol license plates given to officials of the DOTr central office, including its sectoral and attached agencies and corporations’ are revoked.

‘Thus, all concerned officials shall surrender the protocol license plates issued to them, and the LTO shall undertake the necessary coordination and measures to implement the directive,’ the acting DOTr chief added.

Lopez further said that the concerned officials are prohibited from using sirens, blinkers, and similar devices in their motor vehicles in compliance with Administrative Order No. 18 issued by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.

In hot water

He issued the memorandum after he ordered Transportation Undersecretary for Special Concerns Ricky Alfonso to explain his use of a vehicle with unauthorized blinkers and a number ’10’ protocol plate. The plate is issued to high-ranking members of the judiciary branch.

Based on a check, the LTO found out that the license plate was not registered to the vehicle used by Alfonso, a gray Lexus. Alfonso later said he had relieved his driver, who was caught in a viral video punching another driver on the head, for getting in the way of the DOTr official’s vehicle on Katipunan Avenue last week.

Under Executive Order No. 56 order issued by Marcos, only the following government officials are authorized to use protocol license plates with the corresponding numbers: President (protocol plate no. 1); Vice President (2), Senate President (3), House of Representatives Speaker (4), Supreme Court Chief Justice (5), Cabinet secretaries (6), Senators (7), House members (8), Associate Justices of the Supreme Court (9), presiding Justices of the Court of Appeals (10), presiding Justices of the Court of Tax Appeals (10), presiding Justices of the Sandiganbayan (10), Solicitor General (10), Chairs of Constitutional Commissions (11), Ombudsman (11), Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (14) and Chief of the Philippine National Police (14).

The executive order also said that ‘all other officials with equivalent rank as the above-authorized officials’ may be allowed to use protocol license plates based upon the recommendation of the LTO and the approval of the transportation secretary. INQ

Developer Megaworld Corp. will spend P3.4 billion to expand three of its townships across the country, banking on the strength of its provincial projects to drive growth.

In a regulatory filing on Monday, Megaworld said it would reinvest the proceeds raised from selling its shares in its real estate investment trust (REIT) to add new ‘income-generating’ properties in The Upper East Bacolod, The Mactan Newtown in Lapu-Lapu and Paragua Coastown in Palawan.

These include office towers, lifestyle malls and hotels, among others, according to Megaworld.

In Bacolod City, the company led by billionaire Andrew Tan plans to start building a lifestyle mall within the 34-hectare (ha) township across the city government center.

Meanwhile, the 30-hectare The Mactan Newtown will soon feature the standalone Mactan Expo convention center and Mactan World Museum.

This adds to the Lapu-Lapu township’s four residential developments, five office towers and two hotels.

Megaworld is likewise developing two hotels, two residential condominiums, a residential village, commercial districts and nature parks within the 462-ha Paragua Coastown.

‘These three provincial townships, while different in scale and themes, have huge potential for tourism, which will drive business into these localities,’ Megaworld president and CEO Lourdes Gutierrez-Alfonso said in a statement.

‘We hope to be able to expand our offerings that can generate more jobs and help boost tourism in these exciting locations,’ Alfonso added.

Last month, Megaworld sold P2.24 billion worth of its shares in MREIT Inc., making room for possible asset infusions into the latter and beefing up the developer’s coffers for expansion.

In an earlier disclosure, MREIT said The Mactan Newtown would get P830 million of the total proceeds, Paragua Coastown will be allocated P845 million, while The Upper East will get P537.92 million.

Megaworld also sold P1.17 billion worth of MREIT shares in July.

The developer netted a record P12.09 billion in the first six months of the year, representing a 23-percent surge due to high demand in its township projects.

Real estate sales totaled P27.12 billion in the first semester, up by 9 percent. INQ

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) appeared wary of proposals to withdraw large-denomination peso bills from circulation as a supposed deterrent to corruption, with Governor Eli Remolona Jr. warning that such a move could do more harm than good.

Speaking to reporters on Monday, Remolona said the idea, while still under discussion, risked burdening ordinary Filipinos who rely on cash transactions just to create ‘a small inconvenience’ for corrupt contractors and public officials.

He pointed to similar debates abroad, including in the US, where proposals to phase out high-value banknotes to curb criminal activity-from money laundering to drug trafficking-failed to gain traction amid concerns about their impact on law-abiding cash users.

‘It’s a tantalizing proposal, but it’s not so simple,’ Remolona said. ‘To me, it’s like, you know the saying, you cut off your nose just to spite your face. You’re doing more damage than it’s beneficial.’

‘But we’re still looking [into it]. We haven’t decided yet,’ he added.

Purisima

Cesar Purisima, who served as finance secretary during the administration of the late former President Benigno Aquino III, earlier suggested demonetizing P500 and P1,000 bills, arguing that smaller denominations would make it harder for corrupt officials to stash or move illicit cash.

Purisima said other countries have made similar moves before, though he acknowledged that limiting the highest denomination may bring short-term pain for small businesses and ordinary citizens. For that reason, he said this policy could be complemented with a six-month window for the public to exchange their P1,000 and P500 bills.

His suggestion followed explosive testimony in the Senate where two former engineers from the Department of Public Works and Highways claimed that roughly P1 billion in cash was once delivered to a lawmaker accused of graft.

Irregularities

The money, they said, was packed into more than 20 suitcases and ferried in six to seven vans to the penthouse of Ako Bicol Rep. Zaldy Co at a five-star hotel in Taguig City. Co, who has been linked to irregularities in flood control projects, has denied wrongdoing.

The former finance chief earlier called on policymakers to adopt tougher curbs on cash transactions. He warned that the country’s reliance on envelopes and bags of banknotes has made it easier for corruption to thrive.

The BSP later issued a new regulation limiting over-the-counter cash withdrawals to P500,000 a day, as part of efforts to reduce money laundering risks tied to large-value transactions.

At the same news conference yesterday, Remolona said the central bank was considering other measures to curb corruption linked to cash transactions, including steps to promote the use of traceable, non-cash channels such as checks and digital payments.

He added that the existing P500,000 cash withdrawal limit had been ‘very effective so far.’

‘There are complaints, and we’re listening to those complaints,’ he said. ‘But for now, I think it’s a good measure.’

In the wake of corruption allegations surrounding flood control projects, the Commission on Audit (COA) on Monday said it has launched internal investigations and sweeping reforms to strengthen transparency and restore public trust.

COA Chairperson Gamaliel Cordoba, testifying before the Senate finance panel, confirmed that the agency is now investigating its own auditors for possible negligence or complicity in the irregularities flagged in several Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) projects.

‘Fraud auditors also look into the possible negligence or complicity of our resident auditors on the ground,’ Cordoba said.

He told senators that the results of these probes are being turned over to COA’s Internal Affairs Office for possible sanctions. In some cases, findings have already led to the suspension of DPWH engineers ‘implicated in ghost or non-existent projects’ through the Office of the Ombudsman.

He cited the DPWH Bulacan First District Engineering Office as a key focus of the probe, where resident auditors handled 11 municipalities and three cities-an extensive coverage that may have led to oversight gaps.

‘We are looking at every layer of accountability. Those who failed to act or allowed wrongdoing to happen will be held responsible,’ Cordoba said.

He also announced that resident auditors will be periodically reshuffled to avoid overfamiliarity with the agencies they monitor. At the same time, all COA officials and personnel will be required to declare any personal or financial interests tied to their assignments to prevent conflicts of interest.

‘We recognize the limitations in manpower, but we are instituting stronger oversight systems. Our fraud auditors will conduct random checks to ensure resident auditors are doing their jobs,’ he said.

Geotagging all infra projects

Among the most significant changes: mandatory geotagging for all infrastructure projects implemented by national agencies, state corporations, and local governments.

COA Commissioner Douglas Michael Mallillin said the audit body is preparing a memorandum circular requiring the use of geotagging for all infrastructure projects, not only those under DPWH but also those implemented by the National Irrigation Administration (NIA), Department of Health (DOH), government-owned and controlled corporations (GOCCs), and local government units (LGUs).

‘Alam natin na ang DPWH, NIA, DOH, and not only national agencies pati mga GOCC, pati mga LGU po ay may infrastructure projects,’ Mallillin said.

The move follows earlier COA investigations into several DPWH projects in Bulacan, where auditors discovered that some contractors had falsified geotags-using actual project photos but linking them to incorrect locations.

‘We will pursue criminal charges against anyone found tampering with geotags or falsifying documentation,’ Mallillin warned.

COA will now use satellite-based verification for greater accuracy and deploy fraud auditors to conduct surprise inspections.

On Commissioner Lipana

Cordoba also addressed senators’ questions about COA Commissioner Mario Lipana, who was previously mentioned during Senate hearings on the flood control anomalies. He explained that Lipana has been on medical leave abroad since August 1 and has extended it until October 30.

‘While COA has no disciplinary authority over an impeachable official, we are fully coordinating with the Office of the Ombudsman,’ he clarified.

Meanwhile, COA is reviewing the possibility of reviving pre-audit procedures for agencies deemed to have ‘weak internal controls.’

‘If an agency has weak internal controls, we are studying the resources required to conduct a pre-audit, especially in terms of manpower and facilities, and we will balance this with the agency’s operational speed,’ Mallillin said.

The reforms come amid mounting public concern over ghost projects, questionable payments, and billions in alleged flood control anomalies uncovered in recent months./tsb

Thunderstorms are expected to hit Metro Manila and nearby provinces Tuesday, Oct. 14, the weather bureau said.

In a 6:32 a.m. advisory, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) reported that moderate to heavy showers with lightning and strong winds will affect Metro Manila, Bulacan, Pampanga, and Zambales within the next two hours.

In Zambales, the following areas will be affected:

Subic

San Antonio

Castillejos

Olongapo

San Marcelino

San Narciso

San Felipe

Other nearby provinces, including Quezon, Laguna, Batangas, Cavite, and Rizal, are already experiencing similar conditions, which may persist for the next two hours and impact surrounding areas.

Meanwhile, Pagasa said in a separate advisory that easterlies will affect parts of Luzon and Visayas, while localized thunderstorms are expected in Mindanao./mcm/abc

Due to the seasonal increase in flu-like illnesses, recent earthquakes and health breaks, classes in the following areas have either been suspended or shifted to alternative learning mode for Wednesday, October 15.

Calabarzon

Laguna – No face-to-face classes in all levels, public and private until Oct. 31; shift to alternative learning mode

Rizal – No face-to-face classes in all levels, public and private until Oct. 17; shift to alternative learning mode

Alitagtag, Batangas – No face-to-face classes in all levels, public and private including Early Childhood Care and Development and Alternative Learning System

Davao Region

Davao Oriental province – No face-to-face classes in all levels, public and private, until further notice

Nabunturan, Davao de Oro – Asynchronous classes in all levels, public and private, until further notice

Mabini, Davao de Oro – No classes in all levels, public and private, until further notice

Monkayo, Davao de Oro – No classes in all levels, public and private, until further notice

Mawab, Davao de Oro – No classes in all levels, public and private, until further notice

Montevista, Davao de Oro – No classes in all levels until further notice

Northern Mindanao

Gingoog, Misamis Oriental – No face-to-face classes in all levels, public and private, until further notice

Metro Manila

University of Santo Thomas – no classes and office work in all levels until Oct. 16 (Thursday). /apl