Gov’t refuses to release names of infrastructure project proponents - Tinio

Metro Manila, Philippines - The government has a system wherein proponents of projects are named, but it refuses to release it, ACT Teachers party-list Rep. Antonio Tinio said on Thursday, Sept. 18.

Tinio made the remark amid the flood control scandal in which lawmakers are questioning who inserted certain projects in the national budget.

“What I do know is, meron naman silang sistema ng tagging. Alam naman nila kung sino ang proponent ng projects na ito; DPWH (Department of Public Works and Highways), DBM (Department of Budget and Management), alam nila ‘yan. ‘Di lang nila nilalabas. ‘Yun ang problema ngayon,” Tinio said in a press briefing.

[Translation: What I do know is there is a tagging system. The agencies know who are the proponents of these projects; The DPWH and the DBM, they know it. They are just not releasing it. That is the problem now.]

“Kung gustong ilabas, pwedeng ilabas. Kaya lang, hindi nilalabas. Kaya ‘wag tayo maniwala na walang makatukoy kung sino ang proponent nung mga ghost projects sa Bulacan,” he added.

[Translation: If they want to release it, they can. But they would not. So, let us not believe that they cannot identify the proponents of the ghost projects in Bulacan.]

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. earlier flagged substandard and non-existent or so-called ghost flood control projects in Bulacan.

Former Bulacan 1st district assistant engineer Brice Hernandez earlier tagged Senators Joel Villanueva and Jinggoy Estrada in infrastructure project corruption in the province.

Meanwhile, Navotas Rep. Toby Tiangco accused Ako Bicol party-list Rep. Zaldy Co, former appropriations committee chairman, to have inserted P13 billion for projects in the current budget.

The government launched an Independent Commission on Infrastructure to look into the corruption in infrastructure projects.

The Senate and House of Representatives are also conducting separate congressional inquiries into the flood control mess.