With corruption running deep in the government’s infrastructure program – from flood control projects to farm-to-market roads, among others – it may now be easier to count those who are not guilty than those who are, Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo “Ping” M. Lacson lamented Thursday.
Lacson said this after he and his staff reviewed “classified” documents of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), which he had flagged earlier for systematic anomalies in substandard and ghost flood control programs.
“Reviewing the piles of ‘classified’ DPWH documents which I shared with my staff, we all wondered aloud if the more appropriate question to ask is, ‘Who is not?’ rather than, ‘Who is guilty?’. So sad to realize how widely corrupt our government infrastructure program has gone,” he said in a post on X.
In Filipino: Lacson sa Katiwalian sa Infra Program ng Gobyerno: Sino ang Hindi Nagkasala?
Lacson cited DPWH Secretary Vince Dizon’s initial findings that at least 421 out of some 8,000 flood control projects inspected by the DPWH, Department of Economy, Planning and Development (DepDev), Philippine National Police and Armed Forces of the Philippines were “ghost” projects.
He noted as well the revelation by Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian that over P10 billion worth of farm-to-market roads programmed under the 2023 and 2024 national budgets have been “extremely overpriced,” with at least one project costing 23 times more than the standard price set by the DPWH and others with markups of up to 70 percent.
In privilege speeches last August and September, Lacson bared how DPWH officials pocketed public funds, some of them gambling away taxpayers’ money in casinos. He also bared several money-making schemes involving various requirements – including those by junior DPWH personnel.
Many more cases of wrongdoing were bared during Lacson’s chairing of hearings of the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee. He has turned over pieces of evidence gathered during the preparation of his privilege speeches as well as from the Blue Ribbon hearings to the Independent Commission for Infrastructure and the Department of Justice for the prosecution of those involved.
Lacson also called repeatedly for the logical conclusion – the prosecution, conviction and imprisonment – as well as the certainty of punishment for those involved.
While Lacson has resigned as chairman of the panel, he maintained this will not stop his fight against corruption.
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Lacson sa Katiwalian sa Infra Program ng Gobyerno: Sino ang Hindi Nagkasala?
Sa lawak ng katiwalian sa programa ng imprastruktura ng pamahalaan — mula sa mga flood control project hanggang sa mga farm-to-market road — mas madali na ngayong bilangin kung sino ang hindi nagkasala kaysa sa mga sangkot, ayon kay Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo “Ping” M. Lacson nitong Huwebes.
Ito ay matapos suriin ni Lacson at ng kanyang staff ang mga “classified” na dokumento ng Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) na una na niyang ibinunyag bilang bahagi ng sistematikong iregularidad sa mga palpak at guniguning flood control projects.
“Reviewing the piles of ‘classified’ DPWH documents which I shared with my staff, we all wondered aloud if the more appropriate question to ask is, ‘Who is not?’ rather than, ‘Who is guilty?’. So sad to realize how widely corrupt our government infrastructure program has gone,” ani Lacson sa isang post sa X.
Binanggit ni Lacson ang paunang natuklasan ni DPWH Secretary Vince Dizon na hindi bababa sa 421 sa humigit-kumulang 8,000 flood control projects na sinuri ng DPWH, Department of Economy, Planning and Development (DepDev), Philippine National Police (PNP), at Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) ay mga “ghost” o pekeng proyekto.
Ibinahagi rin niya ang pahayag ni Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian na mahigit ₱10 bilyon halaga ng mga farm-to-market roads na nakaprograma sa 2023 at 2024 national budgets ay sobrang overpriced – kung saan may isang proyekto na 23 beses ang halaga ng standard price na itinakda ng DPWH, at ang iba naman ay may markup na umaabot hanggang 70 porsyento.
Noong Agosto at Setyembre, ibinulgar ni Lacson sa dalawang privilege speech ang lawak ng katiwalian sa DPWH, kung saang isinugal ng ilang opisyal ang pera ng taumbayan sa mga casino. Ibinunyag din niya ang iba’t ibang “money-making schemes” na kinasasangkutan maging ng mga junior personnel ng DPWH.
Marami ring kaso ng maling gawain ang nabunyag sa mga pagdinig ng Senate Blue Ribbon Committee na pinamunuan ni Lacson. Isinumite na niya ang mga ebidensyang nakalap sa paghahanda ng kanyang mga privilege speech pati na sa mga pagdinig ng Blue Ribbon sa Independent Commission for Infrastructure at Department of Justice upang papanagutin ang mga sangkot.
Paulit-ulit na binigyang-diin ni Lacson ang kahalagahan ng lohikal na konklusyon — ang pag-usig, pagkakakulong, at katiyakan ng parusa para sa mga sangkot.
Bagaman nagbitiw na si Lacson bilang chairman ng Blue Ribbon Committee, iginiit niyang hindi ito nangangahulugang titigil na siya sa paglaban sa katiwalian.
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