9 Discaya firms lose licenses, accreditation

BOC probes jets, helicopters of other contractors

MANILA, Philippines — The contractor licenses of nine construction firms owned or controlled by Sarah and Curlee Discaya have been revoked, following her admission under oath during a Senate committee hearing that they had participated in bidding for the same government projects.

The Philippine Contractors Accreditation Board (PCAB) issued the revocation order through Board Resolution No. 075 dated Sept. 1 but released only yesterday.

Meanwhile, the Bureau of Customs (BOC) said eight of the 12 luxury cars found at the Discaya compound in Pasig City appeared to have incomplete documents, based on initial findings.

The BOC also said it would check on reports that other contractors in flood control projects are owners of private jets and helicopters.

The Discaya-owned companies whose licenses have been canceled are St. Gerrard Construction Gen. Contractor & Development Corp., Alpha & Omega Gen. Contractor & Development Corp., St. Timothy Construction Corp., Amethyst Horizon Builders and Gen. Contractor & Development Corp., St. Matthew General Contractor & Development Corp., Great Pacific Builders and General Contractor Inc., YPR General Contractor and Construction Supply Inc., Way Maker OPC and Elite General Contractor and Development Corp.

Alpha & Omega and St. Timothy are among the 15 contractors that bagged most of the flood control projects between 2022 and 2025, as revealed by President Marcos.

The board resolution was issued following Discaya’s testimony under oath during the Senate Blue Ribbon committee hearing on Monday on anomalous flood control projects.

In her testimony, she admitted ownership of the nine companies that, at times, competed against one another for the same government project.

“Such admission establishes a scheme of joint or multiple bidding participation designed to influence the outcome of public bidding, manipulate results and corner public projects, thereby undermining transparency, fairness and competition in violation of procurement laws and licensing requirements,” the PCAB said.

“After thorough evaluation of the statements made by Ms. Discaya, the PCAB Board concludes that the continued accreditation of these corporations is inimical to public interest, industry integrity and government procurement transparency,” it added.

The nine firms would be issued notices of revocation and removed from PCAB’s registry of duly licensed contractors.

Under the Contractors’ License Law, no contractor can do business without a license from the PCAB, an attached agency of the Department of Trade and Industry.

The PCAB said it is providing copies of the resolution to the Department of Public Works and Highways, Securities and Exchange Commission, the Government Procurement Policy Board, local government units and all concerned government agencies.

In addition, the matter would be endorsed to the National Bureau of Investigation and Department of Justice to determine possible criminal liability.

Discaya spokesman and lawyer Cornelio Samaniego III said they have nothing to hide and will cooperate in any probe.

On the issuance of a lookout bulletin on the Discayas, Samaniego said they respect the order of the government, as he made it clear they have no intention of leaving the country.

He also shrugged off the spreading in social media of photos showing the Discayas together with former public works chief Manuel Bonoan and other officials. “Even me, as a practicing lawyer, when I see a politician, I ask them for a selfie,” he said.

Amid an ongoing probe on allegations of irregularities including the sale of licenses, the PCAB along with the Construction Industry Authority of the Philippines, has been placed under the direct supervision of Trade Secretary Cristina Roque.

“Placing them under my direct supervision will ensure that order, transparency and accountability is restored within these agencies,” Roque said.

The move is also aimed at addressing mismanagement at the two agencies. “Full transparency and cooperation are mandatory and those who breach the trust and mandate entrusted to us will be held accountable,” Roque said.

Luxury vehicles

On the Discayas’ ownership of several luxury vehicles, the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) said it is coordinating with the Land Transportation Office to verify if the value of the vehicles would match her declared revenues and that of her husband Pacifico’s.

“We will match it with the declared revenues of the owner, if it matches. Because we have to get the valuation, and then we will see how much revenue they reported or income they reported,” BIR Commissioner Romeo Lumagui Jr. said. “If that doesn’t match, they would have undeclared income.”

He said the BIR would also be coordinating with the BOC to secure an official report on the search of the Discayas’ vehicles at the latter’s property in Pasig City. The BOC brandished a court order when it carried out the search on Tuesday.

“Now with that new information, we will coordinate with BOC as well to get the results of the search warrant so that it will be officially communicated to us… and based on the reply of BOC, we will proceed with them,” he said.

Customs commissioner Ariel Nepomuceno said it’s in the interest of the Discayas to have all their vehicles checked. Discaya earlier claimed they had a total of 28 luxury vehicles.

“But I said it is to their interest to really put this problem of theirs aside because they are facing a bigger problem on the construction issue. So this problem on the cars, I advised them to get it over with, get a good lawyer and produce the documents to prove that they paid the correct taxes and duties so they could already focus on their bigger problem, which is the construction,” Nepomuceno said.

Earlier on Tuesday, only two of the Discaya vehicles were found in the couple’s property by the BOC.

But by 9 p.m., all 12 vehicles covered by the search warrant were accounted for, according to the BOC.

The compound houses the office of the Discayas’ St. Gerrard Construction, General Contractor and Development Corp.

Lumagui also said investigation on the top 15 contractors earlier named by President Marcos is still ongoing.

“There are initially visible red flags that we really just confirm before we conclude,” the tax chief said.

At the House of Representatives, Deputy Speaker and Zambales 1st district Rep. Jefferson Khonghun is pushing for a lifestyle check on PCAB executive director Herbert Matienzo.

“We will request to subject Attorney Matienzo to a lifestyle check because there is a report that he is the ringleader of the selling of registration in PCAB,” Khonghun said.

At a hearing on Tuesday by the House committee on infrastructure, Khonghun grilled Matienzo on his personal and professional background.

All of the 11 contractors who appeared at Tuesday’s committee hearing denied involvement in ghost flood control projects.

Infra-comm lead chairman and Bicol Saro party-list Rep. Terry Ridon said he hopes Khonghun can validate his accusation against the PCAB executiuve.

“It can really be done,” Ridon said, referring to a lifestyle check on Matienzo. “Hopefully, congressman Khonghun will have further details in his allegations because the denial of the executive director is also heavy. We have to talk to Cong. Khonghun on how he wants to go about the lifestyle check, but, of course, the BIR (can undertake the lifestyle check against the people in government,” Ridon said over radio dzBB.

Ridon said the ideal lifestyle check should include relatives within the fourth degree of consanguinity. “So, you have to choose if you want to serve the government or you want to engage in business,” he said. - Marco Luis Beech, Jose Rodel Clapano, Evelyn Macairan