ASEANEWS HEADLINE-CORRUPION | MANILA: Flood corruption suspects jailed by Christmas – Dizon
Stranded commuters wade through waist-deep floodwaters as motorists move their vehicles to elevated ground near the Zapote Junction Flyover in Las Piñas on July 22, 2025. /Edd Gumban / The Philippine STAR
Dizon: Evidence needed to jail those involved in flood control mess not in burned building | ANC
MANILA, Philippines — Some of the perpetrators of the flood control scandal – including former Department of Public Works and Highways-Bulacan district engineers Henry Alcantara, Brice Hernandez and Jaypee Mendoza – could be in jail by Christmas, DPWH Secretary Vince Dizon said yesterday.
Dizon, who filed charges for violation of Republic Act 3019 (Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act), RA 9184 (Government Procurement Reform Act) and malversation of public funds before the Office of the Ombudsman on Sept. 13, said contractor Sarah Discaya of St. Timothy Corp. may also be arrested and jailed before Christmas.
Alcantara, Hernandez, Mendoza and Discaya are among the first batch of DPWH officials, contractors and other personalities charged in connection with the anomalous flood control projects that have rocked the country.
“I think they will all be spending their Christmas in jail,” Dizon said in Filipino over dzBB radio.
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According to Dizon, Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla told him that the first batch of people charged for stealing billions of pesos in government funds through flood control anomalies would be “the first to go to jail.” Dizon is confident that the malversation complaints they filed against over 20 people before the ombudsman on Thursday will prosper, noting the pieces of evidence gathered, such as affidavits of residents, in relation to the alleged ghost project in Davao Occidental and a substandard flood control structure in La Union.
“I am confident of the evidence we have,” Dizon said.
Malacañang renewed its appeal yesterday for the public to remain patient and trust the Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) in carrying out its probe on flood control projects.
Presidential Communications Undersecretary Claire Castro cited the filing of various complaints against people involved in anomalous and ghost infrastructure projects.
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Yesterday, protesters staged a rally in front of the ICI office, criticizing what they said was the lack of transparency in the ICI probe and a slow-paced investigation on the corruption scandal.
Castro said the ICI has filed one case, with 15 more expected to be filed in the coming weeks.
She noted that the Anti-Money Laundering Council has frozen nearly P5.2 billion in assets, including bank accounts, insurance policies, motor vehicles, real estate and e-wallets belonging to people involved in corrupt activities.
An immigration lookout bulletin order has also been issued against 92 personalities and persons of interest, she added.“President Marcos assures (the people) that the government’s efforts to hold all those responsible accountable will not end here. The fight against corruption will continue,” Castro said.
“Let’s just let the system, process continue and let’s not be too negative about what the government is doing right now,” she added.
At The Agenda Forum in Quezon City, University of the Philippines-Diliman’s Guido David said public trust in the institutions now is generally low compared to the administration of former president Rodrigo Duterte.
“On the public trust, generally, what we see, it’s a bit low. From 2016 to 2022, former president Duterte had one of the highest trust ratings according to data – that was consistent 80 to 90 percent. We’re not seeing that level of trust right now,” said David, the AI director of the UP-Diliman Institute of Mathematics.
David clarified that public trust in other agencies – including the Commission on Higher Education, Department of Education and Department of Health – is still high.
“The higher ones also include the Armed Forces of the Philippines. Why? Because from the public’s perspective, they do their job. So, they defend our… they wage battles against terrorists. They are doing something right,” he added.
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Mayors, Church, civil society join forces vs graft
At the Novotel Hotel in Quezon City, local chief executives, the Catholic Church and civil society organizations entered into a memorandum of cooperation in efforts to hold accountable government officials and other personalities linked to the anomalous flood control projects.
Under the agreement, the DPWH, Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP)-Caritas, Mayors for Good Governance (M4GG) and the Taong Bayan Action for Participatory, Accountable and Transparent Governance or TAPAT will join forces in conducting a probe on the alleged anomalies.
Baguio City Mayor Benjamin Magalong, M4GG convenor, said local government officials would tap the National Bureau of Investigation and police units in conducting a probe on government infrastructure projects in their areas.
CBCP-Caritas president Jose Bagaforo said the 86 dioceses in the country could assist in the inspections of the projects.
The ICI has already identified 421 suspected ghost flood works, which are undergoing technical validation with assistance from law enforcers, engineers and the planning agency.
ICI member Rogelio Singson estimates that for every ghost flood control project, a “minimum” of 10 people can be charged.
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“To build up a case, you need an affidavit from the barangay captain, who constructed it, who is involved in it,” Singson said yesterday during the inspection of the New Quezon City Jail in Barangay Payatas. “If there’s bid-rigging, you have more people to include.”
Reyes: Prosecute, not persecute
ICI chairman Andres Reyes Jr. is mum about the progress of the commission’s probe, but he gave some details of how the flood control scam worked.
“The project is sold down the line. Somebody up will sell the project and they select the engineer and they select the contractor,” Reyes said.
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He said the ICI is ensuring that each case would be airtight to secure conviction.
“We will make sure that our evidence is based on a clear assessment. We will observe due process. We will prosecute and not persecute,” Reyes said.
Reyes and Singson were among the officials toured by Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla inside the New Quezon City Jail, located just 20 minutes away from the Sandiganbayan. — Helen Flores, Bella Cariaso, EJ Macababbad
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