Most flood-control projects, road and other infrastructure projects built in a Philippine province near the capital in the past six years were substandard or overpriced to compensate for huge kickbacks given to representatives and senators, two former government engineers told a televised Philippine Senate inquiry on Tuesday.
The allegation was made by two former government engineers who helped oversee the works since 2019 in Bulacan, one of the country’s most flood-prone provinces with more than 3.7 million people.
The sworn statements made by Brice Ericson Hernandez and Jaypee Mendoza to the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee further deepen a corruption scandal involving mostly flood control projects that sparked public outrage and protests in the capital region over the weekend.
Photo: AFP
Police on Sunday quelled a rampage by black-clad demonstrators, who hurled rocks, bottles and firebombs at anti-riot police and burned a container van barricade near the presidential palace in Manila. More than 200 people were arrested during the disturbances in which 100 law enforcers were injured.
Newly designated Philippine Secretary of Public Works and Highways Vince Dizon yesterday told a news conference that an internal investigation found another 10 regional officials and engineers in his department who either have “lavish lifestyles beyond their means,” such as traveling in private jets, or were implicated in infrastructure anomalies.
“The gravity of the problem is unthinkable,” Dizon said.
Under questioning by senators, Hernandez said that since 2019, infrastructure projects in Bulacan have not been built according to approved specifications.
Cheaper and longer-drying cement and low-quality construction materials were used to cover kickbacks, usually about 20 percent of the project cost or higher, for corrupt legislators and officials, he said.
“Not one of the specifications in the plans were followed,” Hernandez said. “All of those were not met.”
When asked by Philippine Senator Erwin Tulfo if Bulacan schools and hospitals could crumble in a strong earthquake because of the anomalies, Mendoza said government buildings were built in Bulacan based on approved specifications, but that construction costs were bloated to compensate for the kickbacks.
Manuel Bonoan, whose recent resignation as public works secretary was accepted by Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr, told the inquiry he was unaware of the irregularities.
“This is the first time that I have heard about all these shenanigans,” Bonoan said when asked by senators to comment.
Hernandez and Mendoza have been dismissed from the Philippine Department of Public Works’ district office in Bulacan after acknowledging their role in the anomalies. They have been accused of using huge kickbacks they pocketed to finance expensive lifestyles.
The pair are facing criminal complaints and have sought government protection in exchange for their disclosures against powerful legislators and politicians.
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