SENATE president pro tempore Panfilo “Ping” Lacson yesterday said the Blue Ribbon Committee will invite former ranking officials of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) to explain their links with the Bulacan Group of Contractors, or the BGC Boys.
Lacson, who is the chairman of the Blue Ribbon Committee, said invitations will be sent out to former DPWH secretary Manuel Bonoan and former DPWH undersecretary Robert Bernardo, and a certain Loren Cruz, the alleged bagman of dismissed Bulacan 1st District Engineering Office (DEO) engineer Henry Alcantara.
Lacson told dzBB radio in an interview that it was Bernardo who appointed Alcantara and his deputy, Brice Ericson Hernandez, to the Bulacan DEO; while Bonoan was the approving authority.
“At the very least, meron silang kailangang ipaliwanag (At the very least they [Bonoan and Bernardo] have some explaining to do,” he said.
So far, the senator said the only thing linking Bonoan to the flood control project irregularities is his daughter’s ties with the construction firm of Mayor Rene Maglanque of Candaba town in Pampanga, which was able to bag billions of pesos worth of flood control projects.
Bernardo, on the other hand, was among those mentioned by Curlee and Sarah Discaya, the owners of numerous construction firms which cornered millions of pesos worth of DPWH contracts, as one of the government officials whom they allegedly gave advance commissions for the smooth implementation of their contracts.
Lacson said Bernardo also needs to explain his connection with the BGC Boys, citing a photo of the DWPSH official with the Bulacan engineers at the latter’s “tambayan” (hangout) at Cruz’s house while they were packing millions of pesos supposedly for distribution to proponents of irregular flood control projects.
“What was Bernardo doing in that gathering with the BGC Boys? He has some explaining to do,” he said in Filipino.
Aside from Alcantara and Hernandez, Lacson has said that the BGC Boys also include Jaypee Mendoza, a project engineer; Arjay Domasig, Engineer 2; and Edrick San Diego, a private contractor.
The committee chairman said the Senate panel will also dig deeper into why Sally Santos, owner of SYMS Construction, made cash deliveries of more than P600 million to the Bulacan 1st District Engineering Office.
“And remember, ‘yung testimony ni Sally Santos ay napakahalaga kasi hindi pa resolved ‘yun dahil kung ito-total mo, ‘di ba P41 million, P165 million at saka P457 million, so mahigit P600 million yung dineliver niya doon sa district engineering office mismo. Ano nangyari sa pera? Kanino napunta yun? Ano ba ang kalakaran nila? (And remember, the testimony of Sally Santos has not yet been resolved. She delivered more than P600 million in the district engineering office in three batches of P41 million, P165 million, and P457 million. What happened to the money? To whom did they go? What are the rules regarding these things?),” Lacson said.
DISCAYAS
Lacson said he will meet today with Senate President Vicente Sotto III and Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla to discuss what they will do with Hernandez and the Discaya couple.
The Discayas met with Remulla last Friday to apply as state witnesses in the ongoing investigations on anomalous DPWH contracts, particularly “ghost” and substandard flood control projects, and the payment of kickbacks to government officials and lawmakers.
They have sought to be admitted to the government’s Witness Protection Program (WPP) after they named several members of the House of Representatives and DPWH officials whom they allegedly paid commissions to get government contracts.
“Pag uusapan kung ano ang preliminary, kung ano ang puwede naming gawin kila Discaya at Brice Hernandez at kung sino pa man na nag-a-apply na ma-admit sa Witness Protection Program (We will discuss the preliminaries, on what we will do with the Discayas and Brice Hernandez and anyone else who wants to apply in the WPP),” Lacson said, referring to the meeting.
Lacson said the Senate can only recommend the inclusion of an individual in the WPP since it is the Department of Justice (DOJ) which has the final say on the matter.
He said that “initially,” the Discayas are not qualified to be admitted to the WPP.
He noted that while Curlee Discaya was encouraged to spill the beans relating to the payment of kickbacks and was guaranteed legislative immunity by the Blue Ribbon Committee, he still repeatedly refused to answer the questions of senators and invoked his right against self-incrimination.
“So, sa amin initially, hindi siya karapat-dapat kasi opportunistic lang ‘yung kanyang paghiling na maisama siya sa WPP eh di naman siya nagko-cooperate (So, for us initially, he [Curlee] does not qualify because his request to qualify in the WPP is opportunistic, he does not cooperate),” he said.
He likewise pointed out that the Discayas only revealed the projects awarded to them from 2022 to 2025, when the couple have been contracting government infrastructure projects since 2016.
Lacson said the DOJ, in its evaluation of the Discayas, can consider the lack of “good faith” from the couple since he does see any remorse from either of them.
Lacson said the Blue Ribbon panel is more inclined to recommend Santos to qualify in the WPP.
“Kasi meron siyang nasa cellphone at meron siyang notes habang hinahayag niya yung P457 million, pati yung petsa, kumpleto (Because she has evidence in her cellphone, and she has notes while disclosing her delivery of the P457 million [to the BGC Boys], and she even has the dates),” he added.
Lacson expressed hopes that Alcantara will stop denying his involvement in the flood control mess and disclose what he knows, saying that he believes that the former district engineer is not acting alone.
“Naniniwala ako na hindi gagalaw ang BGC Boys nang walang basbas. Kasi remember, June 22, 2025 lang siya naalis diyan nang i-promote siya ni Bonoan na OIC assistant regional director ng Region 4A. So, mula 2018 nung manumpa siya bilang district engineer, ‘di naman puwedeng gumalaw ‘yung assistant district engineer, project engineer, at mga accountant nang wala siyang basbas. Siya kasi ang huling pumipirma bago mag-release ng pera silang dalawa ni Hernandez (I believe that the BGC Boys will not act without the blessing of someone. Remember, it was only on June 22, 2025 that he [Alcantara] was assigned as OIC assistant regional director of Region 4A. So, from 2018, when he was appointed district engineer [of Bulacan], the assistant district engineer, project engineer, and the accountants cannot act without anyone’s blessing. Because he is the final signatory before he and Hernandez can release funds),” he said.
SEALED EVIDENCE
Lacson said Hernandez has provided the documents and computer files to the Blue Ribbon Committee which he said would support his al legations against lawmakers and others in connection with the anomalous flood control projects.
Hernandez was granted a 12-hour leave last Saturday by Senate President Vicente Sotto III to retrieve the evidence.
“Even if the Blue Ribbon Committee has not finished its probe or come out with a committee report, I will send those pieces of evidence to the ICI (Independent Commission on Infrastructure) to help its own investigation,” Lacson said.
For now, he said the evidence have been sealed and will be opened Monday. He said these will be presented during the hearing scheduled on Tuesday morning.
“We need to preserve the chain of custody so that if the evidence is vital to the case, it will not be compromised,” he said.
