ICI moves to recover ill-gotten flood control funds

THE Independent Commission on Infrastructure (ICI) held a meeting with concerned government agencies to fine-tune efforts to recover illegally obtained wealth from those involved in anomalous flood control projects.

ICI Chairman Andres Reyes said the technical working group, which includes representatives from the commission, the Anti-Money Laundering Council, the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), the National Bureau of Investigation, and the Office of the Ombudsman, among others, will develop a framework for coordination, information sharing, and legal procedures regarding the retrieval of funds and assets currently in the possession of those involved in corruption schemes related to flood control projects and other government infrastructure programs.

“We know that every peso na ninakaw ay pisong nawala sa ating bansa, at mahalaga po na magsama-sama kami dito at magtulungan para maibalik ang pera na pagmamay-ari ng taumbayan,” Reyes said.

DPWH Secretary Vince Dizon said the Office of the Solicitor General will file for civil forfeiture.

“Ito ay mas madali kaysa sa isang kriminal na kaso, mas mabilis. Kasi ang kailangan mo lang i-prove na ‘yung kinikita mo ay mas maliit kaysa doon sa mga pera o assets na hawak mo,” he said.

The Bureau of Customs earlier seized millions worth of luxury vehicles belonging to contractor couple Sara and Pacifico Discaya, who cornered around P31 billion worth of government infrastructure contracts, including flood control projects, from 2022 to 2025.

The couple previously implicated several lawmakers from the lower chamber, alleging they received millions or billions in kickbacks from anomalous flood control projects.

They also admitted involvement in bid-rigging for DPWH flood control contracts.

The Discayas were also earlier slapped with a P7.1-billion tax evasion case filed by the Bureau of Internal Revenue.

Dismissed DPWH officials, particularly from the first Bulacan engineering office, also admitted involvement in ghost flood control projects.

These were the same officials who, according to Senate Pro Tempore Panfilo “Ping” Lacson, previously lost millions in casino gambling.

The ICI earlier recommended to the Office of the Ombudsman the filing of plunder charges against Senators Joel Villanueva and Jinggoy Estrada; resigned Ako Bicol party-list Representative Elizalde “Zaldy” Co; Caloocan Second District Representative Mary Mitzi “Mitch” Cajayon-Uy; former DPWH Undersecretary Roberto Bernardo; and Commission on Audit Commissioner Mario Lipana over their alleged involvement in anomalous flood control projects. (TPM/SunStar Philippines)