MANILA — Flooding and the corruption tied to substandard and ghost flood control projects have made life miserable for Filipinos—and Congress is the “original sin” behind it all, Senator Panfilo “Ping” Lacson said Monday.
Lacson, who chairs the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee investigating the issue, said the probe must not stop at small-time players. “We must ensure the logical conclusion doesn’t end with Henry Alcantara, Brice Hernandez, Sally Santos, or the Discayas. Congress is the original sin. Without budget insertions by lawmakers, corrupt DPWH officials wouldn’t have access to these funds,” he said in Filipino on True FM.
He emphasized that systemic corruption has taken root in the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), with even junior officials devising their own kickback schemes.
Lacson is set to lead the next Blue Ribbon Committee hearing on Tuesday, Sept. 23. He requested Senate President Vicente Sotto III to delay the regular session to 4 p.m. to accommodate the hearing.
The investigation has implicated several figures, including dismissed DPWH engineers Alcantara and Hernandez; Syms Construction owner Sally Santos; and Cezarah and Pacifico Discaya II. Hernandez and Santos have cooperated with the Senate. Alcantara and Pacifico were cited for contempt and detained, while Cezarah was issued a show cause order.
On Monday, the committee was to review documents retrieved by Hernandez, who was allowed to return home under strict security to gather potential evidence.
Hernandez previously alleged that Senators Joel Villanueva and Jinggoy Estrada were involved in budget insertions for 2023 and 2025 and received kickbacks from flood control projects. Both senators denied the accusations.
When asked what he hoped to find in Hernandez’s submissions, Lacson said the goal is accountability. “We need to get to the root of this and hold those truly responsible—not just the Hernandezes and Alcantaras, but their superiors too. We can’t reach them yet until we have enough proof,” he noted.
Former DPWH Undersecretary for Operations Roberto Bernardo is among those invited to testify. Lacson noted that Bernardo had appointed Alcantara to the DPWH Bulacan office. At the time, Alcantara was “floating” and seconded to Manila under then-Mayor Joseph Estrada.
Lacson also committed to supporting the newly formed Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI). “If we obtain evidence that can help the ICI, we won’t keep it to ourselves—we’ll share it immediately,” he said. “I’m not bragging, but we can really help.”
Lastly, Lacson stressed the need for Congress to exercise self-restraint by ending the practice of budget insertions for local infrastructure. “I hope Speaker Faustino Dy III and Senate President Tito Sotto agree with the appropriations and finance committee chairs to ban these insertions, especially for the DPWH. That’s where it all begins—and some lawmakers just got greedier and greedier,” he said.| BNN Integrated News
