Senate Blue Ribbon resumes flood control probe today

MANILA, Philippines —  The Senate Blue Ribbon committee is set to resume hearings today into alleged irregularities in flood control projects, with lawmakers expected to press deeper into claims that flawed data submissions and possible cover-ups distorted government assessments of so-called “ghost” projects.

While former Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) secretary Manuel Bonoan has already arrived in Manila yesterday, Senate President Pro Tempore and Blue Ribbon chairman Panfilo Lacson has yet to confirm whether the embattled former official would attend the hearing.

Today’s hearing will tackle allegations that Bonoan sent incorrect grid coordinates to Malacañang, which led inspection teams to tag hundreds of projects as nonexistent, inflating initial reports and raising questions about accountability within the DPWH.

Resource persons from the DPWH are expected to testify as the committee seeks to establish how the errors occurred and whether they were deliberate.

In an interview with radio dzBB, Sen. Francis Pangilinan said Bonoan also has“a lot to explain” amid allegations of massive kickbacks tied to flood control projects, as bared by former DPWH undersecretary Roberto Bernardo.

He recalled how Bernardo’s testimony before the Blue Ribbon committee last year pointed to alleged dealings involving Bonoan and the late former undersecretary Cathy Cabral amounting to about P15 billion, or roughly P5 billion a year in supposed commissions.

Apart from the DPWH, Pangilinan said the committee would also tackle the culpability of House lawmakers in the flood control corruption scandal amid criticisms that investigations carried out by the justice department, ombudsman and Senate focused only on senators.

“They were all invited last year. Seventeen (congressmen) were invited in the last hearing and they were a no-show. So, we can tackle that again tomorrow, on what’s the status of this,” he said, stressing that the lawmakers tagged in the scandal are not yet “off the hook.”

Pangilinan said the Senate still has much to uncover, describing the allegations as only the “tip of the iceberg.”

Pangilinan reiterated support for the creation of an Independent People’s Commission, citing the breadth of the case and the volume of information being relayed to senators from various provinces.

In the meantime, he said, continued Blue Ribbon hearings remain important, especially as other investigative bodies undergo transitions.