19/11/2025
Since its creation last Sept.11 this year, the Independent Commission on Infrastructure (ICI) have so far come out with five interim reports. The ICI submitted its first-ever interim report last Sept. 29 to the Office of the Ombudsman. In a 32-page report, the three-man ICI chaired by retired Supreme Court (SC) associate justice Andres Reyes Jr. flagged possible anomalies in a P289.5-million flood control project in Naujan, Oriental Mindoro.
The ICI asked the anti-graft body to determine appropriate charges to be filed against 18 public officials who included Ako Bicol party-list Rep. Elizaldy Co and district engineers of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) implicated on the alleged “ghost” flood control projects.
Acting on the ICI complaint, Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla officially filed formal charges against Co and his other co-accused DPWH officials before the Sandiganbayan last Tuesday. One count of malversation and two counts of graft were lodged against Co and DPWH Region 4 officials and executives of construction firm Sunwest Inc. owned by Co’s family.
In its second interim report, the ICI recommended to the Ombudsman appropriate charges to be filed against Senators Joel Villanueva and Jinggoy Estrada as well as Co and DPWH Bulacan district engineers Henry Alcantara and Brice Hernandes in for their alleged roles in a kickback scheme involving flood control projects in the province.
It was on the third, fourth and fifth interim report referrals that the ICI recommended the filing of administrative charges against resigned DPWH Secretary Manuel Bonoan, his former undersecretaries Roberto Bernardo and Ma.Catalina Cabral and 8 other DPWH officials. They were charged for grave misconduct, gross dishonesty, conduct prejudicial to the best interest of the service, or violations of the Anti-Graft Law under Republic Act (RA) 6713.
But in all the five ICI referrals to the Ombudsman, none has yet been officially filed against other key leaders of Congress whose names were frequently dragged into Co’s alleged shenanigans in the DPWH flood control projects. They included former Speaker Martin Romualdez, former Senate president Francis Escudero and Senators Grace Poe and Nancy Binay. Notably, the ICI has yet to recommend criminal action against controversial couple Curlee and Sara Discaya whose companies allegedly cornered multi-million peso worth of flood control projects.
It’s no wonder, a third petition filed last week before the SC to question the constitutionality of Executive Order No.94 that created the ICI. Former Negros Oriental Rep. Jacinto Paras, and Atty. Manuelito Luna filed the latest petition at the SC. Both Paras and Luna served during the previous administration of former president Rodrigo Duterte. Paraswas the former Secretary of the Presidential Adviser on Political Affairs while Luna served as ex- Commissioner in the Presidential Anti-Crime Commission (PACC).
In particular, all three petitions questioned the ICI created under Executive Order (EO) 94 issued by President Ferdinand “B**gbong” Marcos Jr. (PBBM) on Sept.11 this year. Among other things, PBBM tasked the ICI to investigate anomalous flood control and other infrastructure projects in the past ten years.
At the Kapihan sa Manila Bay news forum today, Paras and Luna expressed optimism that the SC may finally pay attention to the three petitions that all questioned the constitutionality of the ICI. Paras and Jacinto filed their 8-paged petition to the SC last Nov.11 reiterating the need for the issuance of temporary restraining order (TRO) against the ICI pending final disposition of the instant case.
Speaking as a former lawmaker for three terms at the House of Representatives, Paras argued EO 94 was blatant usurpation of legislative power of Congress. Instead, Paras suggested that PBBM should wait for the present 20th Congress to pass into law with a legislated Independent People’s Commission (IPC). The IPC bill principally authored by Senate president Vicente “Tito” Sotto III was unanimously endorsed for passage into law by his collegues. It needs counterpart bills filed at the Lower House.
For more details of our conversations with Paras and Luna, please read my Commonsense column this Friday at The Philippine Star.
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