Natabunan din ba?
Months after the revelations of massive corruption involving flood-control projects were first revealed, the public has yet to receive answers to some troubling questions.
For one, whatever happened to the supposed inspection and audit of public infrastructures here in Laguna province that were supposed to be conducted by local government units?
Sure, the provincial government had ordered an immediate inspection of all public buildings here in Laguna province last October.
That order was immediately complied with by many LGUs in the province, with special emphasis on school buildings.
But those inspections were borne out of increased public anxiety due to the massive earthquakes that hit Visayas and Mindanao in the past weeks – not to mention the four minor earthquakes that struck Los Baños and Alaminos, Laguna last week.
We’re talking about the pledge made by some mayors to check not only flood-control projects but also all infrastructure works conducted by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) in past years.
Almost three months into the “scandal of the decade,” Lagunenses are now demanding: what are the results of these so-called inspections – if such inspections were even made in the first place?
The Discaya curse
The urgency of conducting inspections on major infrastructure works here in Laguna province is highlighted by the discovery that many of them were contracted to companies owned by, or connected with, the controversial couple Curlee and Sarah Discaya.
In case people didn’t know or have forgotten, a quick check by OpinYon Laguna’s investigative team revealed that Discaya-connected companies bagged many such flood-control projects in the first district of Laguna alone.
In San Pedro City, for instance, for the year 2023, YPR General Contractor bagged the contract for "Construction of Slope Protection at Barangay Narra, San Pedro, Laguna," a project with a total price tab of P112 million.
In 2024, three major flood control projects were bagged by Amethyst Horizon Builders; two projects by Elite General Contractor and Development; and one project by Great Pacific Builders and General Contractor. Total combined budget of these projects: P390 million.
And it gets worse (or better, from the Discayas' point of view) in 2025: their companies received the contract for seven out of 11 flood-control projects allocated to San Pedro City for that year.
Contracts for three of these projects were awarded to Elite General Contractor and Development; two to Amethyst Horizon Builders; and one each to Great Pacific Builders and General Contractor to YPR General Contractor and Construction Supply.
Total amount of projects allocated to the Discaya-linked contractors for 2025: a whopping P491 million.
That translates to a 338-percent increase in the total amount of projects awarded to these companies in just over three years. And that was for San Pedro City alone.
Poor quality
While it has been repeated over and over again that there are no “ghost projects” in San Pedro City, what has been called into question is the structural integrity of these projects.
As far back as August, for instance, concerned citizens have called the attention of OpinYon Laguna (and authorities as well) into a flood control project in Barangay Estrella that was reportedly constructed so poorly that it was in itself a potential cause of harm for residents.
“Nais ko lamang po ipahayag ang aming pagkadismaya sa flood control/retaining wall project dito sa aming lugar na walang maayos na plano at substandard ang pagkakagawa,” that concerned citizen said in his message.
“Nag-alala po ako sa magiging epekto nito kapag lumakas nanaman ang ulan. Masasayang nanaman ang buwis ng taumbayan. Naiipon na din po ang tubig na maaaring magdulot ng pagdami ng lamok, worst dengue,” he added.
A quick check into the data compiled by OpinYon Laguna showed that there was, indeed, a project listed in the 2023 General Appropriations Act entitled “Construction of Flood Control (Slope Protection Structure), Barangay Estrella, San Pedro City, Laguna.”
No contractor was listed for the project, which cost P60 million.
In Barangay Sampaguita, too, sources have reported to OpinYon Laguna that a retaining wall along the banks of a creek skirting the village was also reportedly on the verge of collapse.
Lo and behold, in OpinYon Laguna's database, there was indeed a project in the 2024 GAA called "Construction of Riverbank Protection Structure at Barangay Calendola, San Pedro City, Laguna," just adjacent to Barangay Sampaguita.
That project, which cost P50 million, was awarded to Great Pacific Builders and General Contractors, a Discaya-linked firm.
Not just photo-ops, please
Both in talks with OpinYon Laguna and on posts on social media, local officials of San Pedro, Laguna have assured that the city government is currently conducting assessments of major infrastructure works in the city. (See related story on page 4.)
Here’s an excerpt from a post on Mayor Art Mercado’s page last September:
“Bago matapos ang work week, umikot tayo sa mga on-going projects natin na Slaughter House at Drainage Project sa Southville 3A, Brgy. San Antonio kasama ang ating City Administrator Atty. Henry Salazar at City Engineer-OIC Engr. Raphael Garcia para makita ang naging status ng mga proyektong ito at ano pa ang mga kailangan natin gawin.”
Okay, so the local government has conducted inspections.
So what’s next?
What did they find out? Most importantly, what’s delaying them from releasing the results of these assessments?
Could it be that some officials of the DPWH – who, may we also point out, have suddenly become allergic to local media in past months, to the point of even barring them from getting close to headquarters (as OpinYon’s Eastern Visayas bureau experienced) may have had a hand in this delay?
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