By Erika Mae P. Sinaking
THE GOVERNMENT is set to implement major reforms in the country’s contractor licensing system as it overhauls the Philippine Contractors Accreditation Board (PCAB) amid investigations into anomalous flood control projects, Trade Secretary Ma. Cristina A. Roque said on Wednesday.
Appearing as a resource person before the Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI), Ms. Roque said members of the board as well as executive directors of PCAB and the Construction Industry Authority of the Philippines (CIAP) will be replaced.
“We are just waiting for the appointments,” Ms. Roque told a news briefing.
The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), along with PCAB and CIAP, is also reviewing processes and implementing reforms to strengthen oversight, she said.
As part of the reforms, PCAB board members will no longer be allowed to own construction companies to prevent conflicts of interest.
“They should have a construction background, meaning they could be engineers or part of construction firms,” Ms. Roque explained. “But they cannot own a construction company.”
Relatives of board members are also being considered for exclusion from receiving licenses if found to be involved in any anomalies.
A fact-finding team, which Ms. Roque first mentioned in September, has been established within the DTI to review contractors involved in flood control projects and other anomalies, as well as new applicants. “We want the legitimate construction industry to follow these new rules so they do not abuse their licenses,” she said.
Licenses will now be routed through the Office of the DTI Secretary for checking before being granted by the PCAB. “Before, the license went directly to the PCAB board. Now, the license will be passed to the office of the secretary for checking, and then from there we will give it to the PCAB board,” she said.
Ms. Roque also said the review for the potential license revocation of the 15 contractors initially flagged is now in the “final stages,” Ms. Roque said in the same briefing. While their names remain undisclosed, the DTI and ICI are verifying their violations before taking formal action.
These 15 contractors were identified in a presidential audit, which revealed they cornered approximately P100 billion or about 20% of the P545-billion budget, allocated to flood control projects since 2022.
Ms. Roque noted that, beyond the 15 top contractors, there is an additional list of firms, which she revealed to the ICI during the hearing. She noted that the department is still finalizing details to ensure all information is accurate.
“We can’t divulge the names of additional contractors that have some violations, as we are still investigating with the ICI since the ICI is really investigating this issue of the flood control and issue with the contractors,” Ms. Roque said.
GOING LIVEAlso on Wednesday, the ICI said it will begin livestreaming its proceedings by next week, following calls from the public to make its probe on the multibillion-peso flood control scandal for transparency.
“We will now go on livestream next week once we get to be able to have the technically capability.” ICI Chairman Andres B. Reyes, Jr. told the Senate Committee on Justice.
Since its creation by the President in September, the ICI has kept all of its proceedings behind closed doors. The independent body had only issued press statements or conducted news briefings, led by the ICI spokesperson.
Earlier, several lawmakers and civil society organizations called on the independent body to be more transparent in its proceedings, warning that any attempt to conceal wrongdoing could further erode public trust.
Business groups have also called on the Marcos administration to take swift and decisive actions against corruption, noting that the controversy could further damage investor confidence and posed serious threat to the country’s economy, governance, and international standing.
“We will try our best to be able to be on full blast in our investigation of all this fraud,” Mr. Reyes said.
Justice Committee Chairman Senator Francisco Pancratius N. Pangilinan welcomed the ICI’s move as the panel deliberates on the proposed Infrastructure Anomalies Investigation, under Senate Bill No. 1215.
“People would like to know the facts of these cases and would like to be updated as to the developments and progress of the investigation. The livestreaming of the proceeding would definitely address this concern of the public,” he added.
The proposed measure seeks to create the Independent People’s Commission to investigate all government infrastructure projects, in effect institutionalizing the ICI which was created through an executive order.
Congressmen also welcomed the move as it could boost transparency and potentially help restore public confidence amid waning confidence in the government.
“Livestreaming the hearings will help restore public trust and dispel doubts about the fairness of the investigation,” Las Pinas Rep. Mark Anthony G. Santos said in a statement.
The move would also be a deterrent against political interference that may happen behind closed doors, said Mr. Santos.
In a separate statement, a group of minority lawmakers called on the public to remain vigilant, saying there may have already been cover ups in its earlier discussions.
Meanwhile, Malacañang dismissed as baseless a private citizen’s letter urging the ICI to investigate alleged ties between First Lady Marie Louise Araneta-Marcos and businessman Maynard S. Ngu.
In a briefing, Palace Press Officer Clarissa A. Castro said the letter, filed by an individual identified as John Santander, did not contain any evidence linking the First Lady to irregularities involving flood control or infrastructure projects — the specific mandate of the ICI.
“From what we’ve read — and I know you’ve read it as well — there is nothing in the letter of sentiment that alleges any irregular flood control projects linking the First Lady, Liza Araneta-Marcos,” she said in Filipino.
Ms. Castro also questioned the motive behind the complaint, suggesting it may be an attempt to discredit Ms. Marcos.
“Is this simply a fishing expedition meant to malign the First Lady?” She said.
She added that Mr. Ngu, a tech billionaire, is no longer the Special Envoy to China as his term expired last August.
Mr. Santander earlier this week asked the ICI to investigate alleged links between Ms. Marcos and Mr. Ngu, who was described in the complaint as a supposed “bagman” of Senator Francis Joseph “Chiz” G. Escudero.
The letter of sentiment urged the ICI to look into possible irregularities involving flood control projects.
Also on Wednesday, Ms. Castro said President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. has yet to take a position on reinstating the death penalty in the Philippines amid renewed public frustration over corruption.
Any move to lift the decades-long suspension of the death penalty would require “careful and thorough study,” she said, stressing that the country’s five pillars of the justice system must first be strengthened.
“We cannot simply reimpose the death penalty without ensuring that our justice system is clean, fair, and functioning properly,” she added, warning that past cases of fabricated evidence and wrongful convictions underscore the risks of reinstating the measure.
“The reimposition of the death penalty must be studied deeply.”
The Philippines abolished capital punishment in 2006 under then-President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, making it the first Asian nation to do so in the 21st century.
Calls to restore it have resurfaced periodically, especially in response to crime and corruption scandals, but the measure has yet to gain traction in Congress.
The Philippines is embroiled in a multibillion-peso public works scam following the pronouncements of Mr. Marcos last July, where he exposed lawmakers allegedly receiving kickbacks from such projects. — with Adrian H. Halili, Kenneth Christiane L. Basilio, and Chloe Mari A. Hufana
