Sandigan denies ‘congtractor’ bid to quash flood control cases

MANILA, Philippines — Two divisions of the Sandiganbayan threw out the bids of alleged “congtractor” Uswag Ilonggo party-list Rep. James Ang to dismiss one graft case against him and consolidate the 14 others.

In a 17-page resolution issued on Sept. 2, the anti-graft court’s Third Division ruled to deny for lack of merit Ang’s motion for consolidation and motion to quash information.

The prosecution had argued that consolidating the cases would prolong litigation for each case, “because the prosecution will have to present witnesses and pieces of evidence for all counts, which are insignificant for the other charges.”

Ang is facing 14 counts of violation of Section 3 (h) of Republic Act 3019 or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act over contracts for road projects in parts of Panay island worth millions of pesos, all filed by the ombudsman.

Two were filed before the Second Division, one before the Seventh Division, three before the First Division, three before the Fifth, two before the Fourth Division, two before the Sixth Division and one before the Third Division, particularly the case involving a P5.9 million contract for a project involving the Iloilo-Antique Road in March 2023.

The Third Division also decided to junk Ang’s motion to quash by declaring it “cannot subscribe to Ang’s argument that the Information lacks factual averment that the project was not completed, or was substandard or was a ghost project to the damage of the government” since the charge against him indicated that he had interest in the road project while being a government official.

In a nine-page resolution on Sept. 3, the Sandiganbayan Seventh Division also ruled to deny for lack of merit Ang’s motions for consolidation and to quash information.

It added there was no need to merge the cases against him, ruling that these must be tried individually.

Late last month, the Sandiganbayan Sixth Division also denied Ang’s motion to quash the graft case over an P8.1-million contract for road projects in Iloilo and Antique.

DPWH flood projects for 2027 properly vetted

Meanwhile, former Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) undersecretary Carlos Primo David said that the flood control projects designed and planned by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) for funding and implementation under its 2027 budget had gone through a proper science-based vetting process.

In an exclusive interview with The STAR, David said that the three-member independent advisory committee formed by DPWH Secretary Vince Dizon last year had slashed the approved flood control projects from over 600 down to 250 high-priority infrastructure works for the upcoming budget year.

David told The STAR that the independent committee shielded agency leaders from political pressure when rejecting substandard or redundant proposals.

He noted that the initiative marked the first time in public works history that local district engineers were stripped of ultimate authority in deciding which flood control projects received funding.