THE Department of Justice (DoJ) has placed three former Public Works officials and a couple linked to alleged irregularities in flood control projects under protected witness status, Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin “Boying” C. Remulla said on Wednesday.
Mr. Remulla confirmed that former Bulacan District Engineer Henry C. Alcantara, First District Assistant Engineers Brice Ericson P. Hernandez and Jaypee Mendoza, as well as Cezarah Rowena C. Discaya, and her husband Pacifico F. Discaya, are now covered by the program.
He said the DoJ has written to the Senate President to formalize their protection and will hold further discussions with the chamber.
“These witnesses are showing good faith by coming forward with documents and notes they have kept through the years. We consider them protected witnesses,” Mr. Remulla told justice reporters in Filipino.
He added that their cooperation is crucial as they provide evidence such as ledgers and records that could help establish transparency in ongoing cases.
The Justice chief clarified that being declared a protected witness is different from being discharged as a state witness, which frees individuals from criminal liability.
“That is a separate process. We are just at the tip of the iceberg,” he said.
He also confirmed that the Discayas were granted the same protection, saying the government would evaluate the scope of assistance, including security for their families.
“We will help them first with the security problems.”
Mr. Remulla said the information gathered so far has gone beyond what has been revealed in Senate hearings, with more names and details expected to surface.
He emphasized that the DoJ’s role is to prosecute cases, but securing witnesses and evidence is key to moving investigations forward.
Mr. Remulla noted that Mr. Hernandez has already begun returning assets, including a Lamborghini Urus, to the Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) as part of restitution efforts.
“These are symbols of wealth that should not have been amassed by a public servant. If these came from government funds, they must not be repeated,” he said.
He added that recovered assets should be auctioned promptly, with the proceeds remitted to the Treasury.
Malacañang on Wednesday said President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. wants stolen flood control funds to be returned to state coffers.
“Return the people’s money,” Palace Press Officer Clarissa A. Castro said in Filipino at a briefing. “It is not enough to simple file cases against those involved in the anomalous flood control projects; nor is it enough to imprison them because the President wants people’s money to be returned.”
This also comes as the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) ordered to freeze the assets of contractors and agency officials implicated in the scandal.
Public Works Secretary Vivencio B. Dizon on the same day said the agency has requested the AMLC to freeze about P474.48 million worth of vehicles registered under Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) officials, staff, and private contractors.
The department will likewise issue show-cause orders to 10 regional directors and engineers over allegations of lavish lifestyles, document tampering, and links to defective projects.
INFRACOMM PROBE SUSPENDEDAlso on Wednesday, a congressman said the House of Representatives will suspend its investigation into anomalous flood control deals to pave the way for a “full and impartial” probe by the government’s fact-finding body.
Speaker Faustino “Bojie” Dy III will turn over all documents the House joint infrastructure committee has collected during its hearings into bogus flood control contracts to the ICI, Party-list Rep. Terry L. Ridon said in a media briefing.
He said the joint House panel investigating questionable flood control infrastructure would hand over a trove of evidence, including testimonies linking top officials “in the Executive and Legislative” to substandard or nonexistent flood mitigation structures in Bulacan province.
“We are announcing the suspension of proceedings of the House Infrastructure Committee to give way to the full and impartial proceedings of the ICI,” he said, adding the congressional panel is willing to cooperate with the fact-finding body.
The Philippines is facing a widening scandal over billions of pesos worth of flood control projects, with the two legislative chambers launching separate investigations amid allegations of kickbacks tied to public works contracts.
Lawmakers have traded accusations during parallel hearings, raising concerns over the credibility of the inquiries.
Mr. Marcos has formed an independent commission to investigate anomalies in flood control and other infrastructure projects, with authority to recommend criminal, civil, and administrative charges.
Mr. Dy on Monday said the House should let the independent commission take the lead in the investigation into bogus flood control contracts. “Most Filipinos no longer believe what’s being uncovered in the House committee,” he told reporters in Filipino.
Mr. Ridon said the House joint committee will keep its inquiry suspended “for as long as the ICI is… doing the work for transparency, accountability and justice.”
The Marcos administration has been rocked by an unfolding flood control scandal involving substandard, incomplete, or nonexistent infrastructure in a country regularly battered by flooding.
The controversy stems from Mr. Marcos’ revelation in August that more than 6,000 flood control projects launched since 2022 lacked key details. About P545 billion has been allocated for flood control since then, with P100 billion cornered by top contractors.
REPAIR OF SUBSTANDARD DPWH PROJECTSMalacañang also said that Mr. Marcos ordered the immediate repair of substandard and unfinished government projects to prevent taxpayers’ money from going to waste following revelations that some of the DPWH projects were deliberately built below standards to allow kickbacks.
“What needs fixing should be repaired immediately so it can be utilized, otherwise the money spent will go to waste,” Ms. Castro told the same briefing.
Education Secretary Juan Edgardo M. Angara earlier reported that over 1,000 classrooms turned over by the DPWH to the Department of Education (DepEd) remain idle because they were left unfinished.
As a result, public classrooms remain crowded and rundown.
Meanwhile, a Philippine senator proposed to allocate part of the 2026 budget for flood control projects to fund the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD)’s livelihood programs.
In a Senate budget hearing, Senator Erwin T. Tulfo proposed that part of the budget for flood mitigation projects should be transferred to the Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situations (AICS) and the Sustainable Livelihood Program.
“Perhaps we can do that. We can look into it or study it,” Mr. Tulfo said.
The government moved to cut the DPWH budget for flood mitigation projects amid the allegations of irregularities in projects, including substandard, incomplete or nonexistent infrastructure projects.
The AICS program seeks to provide immediate financial and material assistance to individuals and families in crisis; while the SLP is designed to help poor, vulnerable, and marginalized households and communities improve their socio-economic well-being by providing them with opportunities to develop sustainable livelihoods and access necessary assets.
DSWD Secretary Rexlon “Rex” T. Gatchalian said that the agency had initially requested P362.3 billion for 2026, a P149.2 billion drop from its initial P221 billion proposal for next year.
“The biggest item there would be protective services, under that is the AKAP (Ayuda para sa Kapos ang Kita Program) that is around P26 billion. Also the (AICS) also had a decline around P14 billion to P15 billion,” Mr. Gatchalian said. “There was also the SLP which decreased by P1.8 billion,” he added.
However, Senator Sherwin T. Gatchalian is pushing for the suspension of the AKAP program, amid concerns of budget insertions in the 2025 budget.
“When a program is not thoroughly discussed, this is what happens—numerous CoA findings, the intended purpose is not met, and worse, the program becomes redundant,” the senator said.
“It’s a waste of resources and inefficient. So, I understand why AKAP was not carried over to 2026,” he added.
AKAP is a social welfare scheme that provides one-time cash assistance worth P3,000 to P5,000 to workers whose income falls below the poverty threshold. — Erika Mae P. Sinaking, Chloe Mari A. Hufana, Kenneth Christiane L. Basilio, and Adrian H. Halili
