THE Department of Justice (DOJ) has admitted several former officials of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), along with a private contractor, into the Witness Protection Program (WPP) as part of its ongoing investigation on alleged irregularities in the implementation of flood control projects.
In a press conference on Thursday, January 15, 2025, Justice Acting Secretary Fredderick Vida said former DPWH undersecretary Roberto Bernardo, ex-DPWH Bulacan District Engineer Henry Alcantara, DPWH engineer Gerard Opulencia, and the owner and manager of Syms Construction Trading Sally Santos were placed under state protection after expressing willingness to cooperate with investigators.
Vida said among the rights of those under WPP is to be discharged from criminal liability but only in the case they are helping the government with.
Prosecutor General Richard Anthony Fadullon, however, said DPWH engineers Brice Hernandez and Jaypee Mendoza, who were earlier considered “protected witnesses,” does not qualify as state witnesses.
“Hindi namin pwede banggitin kung ano ang naging resulta ng evaluation... But suffice to say, sa ngayon, wala kaming nakikitang pangangailangan para sila ay i-discharge patungkol sa kaso kung saan sila ay lumalapit para matanggap na testigo ng estado,” he said.
(We cannot disclose the results of the evaluation. But suffice it to say that, at this time, we do not see any need to discharge them in relation to the case for which they are seeking to be admitted as state witnesses.)
As part of restitution, DOJ officials said the four state witnesses have so far returned P316 million to the National Government.
They said they are expecting to receive P1.5 billion from the four individuals, in which P1 billion is expected to come from Bernardo. (TPM/SunStar Philippines)