THE Office of the Ombudsman has created a 13-member special panel of investigators to conduct a motu-proprio investigation into alleged irregularities in the bidding and implementation of all national and local flood control projects of the government.
A two-page office order dated August 22, 2025 directed the investigating team to build a case against public officials and entities found involved in such transactions.
The unsigned order was issued by Acting Ombudsman Mariflor Punzalan Castillo.
“The special panel of investigators is directed to conduct a prompt investigation, gather evidence, and recommend appropriate actions, including the filing of criminal and administrative cases, against all individuals found responsible,” the Ombudsman said.
It clarified that the panel has the authority to compel compliance by government agencies to provide access to or submit documents necessary in the investigation, to issue subpoena and take testimonies, and even to pry into bank deposits relative to individuals and entities it may find linked to questioned contracts.
“The special panel of investigators is hereby empowered to direct any public officer or employee concerned to furnish it with copies of documents pertaining to contracts or transactions, relative to the government’s flood control program …request any government agency for assistance and information; … issue subpoenas and take testimony; and examine and have access to bank accounts and records subject to limitations provided by the law,” the Ombudsman added.
The scope of the investigation shall cover “flood control projects of the government, both local and national, and the alleged corrupt practices involved therein, including misappropriation of public funds.”
Named co-chairpersons of the panel were Assistant Ombudsman Caesar Asuncion and Maria Olivia Elena Roxas.
The panel members are seasoned corruption investigators Maria Jennifer Lacea, Marie Beth Almero, Maria Karen Veloso, Frederick Aguilar, Carmelo Gines Jr., Albert Leynes, Ann Germaine Logan-Constantino, Janice Baltazar-De Guzman, Julber Tadiaman, Dino Jacinto, and Ryan Paul Lumanog.
Both Asuncion and Roxas have more than 30 years of experience handling investigations of corruption involving government projects, specifically public works contracts under the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).
In 2012, Roxas recommended the indictment of DPWH Region 5 Regional Director Eleno Colinares Jr. for graft in connection with a fraudulent vehicle rental scheme.
She was also presented as one of the prosecution’s witnesses and testified during trial of the accused before the Sandiganbayan, leading to his conviction and imprisonment for six to eight years.
Much earlier in 2004, Roxas was also the graft investigation and prosecution officer who filed criminal and civil cases against former Armed Forces comptroller Maj. Gen. Carlos F. Garcia, his wife, and children over mishandling of military funds.
Asuncion led the special panel of investigators created in 2020 to investigate the DPWH and its officials for refusal or defiance of the Ombudsman’s directives.
Among these were the 2017 order for the dismissal of four DPWH-Davao Oriental Engineering District officials for grave misconduct; the 2018 dismissal of a DPWH-Manila engineer for grave misconduct and serious dishonesty; and the preventive suspension of five DPWH Region 8 officials for favoring a contractor in the bidding of a P264.22 million storm surge protection wall project in Palo, Leyte.
PERFORMANCE AUDIT
The Commission on Audit has ordered the start of a performance audit on all flood control projects in Metro Manila and nearby provinces to determine if they have delivered their intended purpose and whether they make sense cost wise.
COA Chairperson Gamaliel Cordoba, in a memorandum dated Aug. 23, 2025, directed the Performance Audit Office under Director Michael Racelis and Assistant Commissioner Bresilo Sabaldan to review the implementation of the government’s Flood Risk Management and resiliency Program (FRMRP).
The “FRMRP for Metro Manila and Surrounding Areas” was one of the programs included in the list of projects, programs and activities that were included in the COA’s Performance Audit Portfolio approved through COA Resolution No. 2024-018.
“Pursuant to COA Resolution No. 2024-018 dated December 16, 2024, …you are directed to prioritize and immediately conduct a performance audit on flood control projects, and submit a report thereon upon completion. For your immediate and strict compliance,” the COA chief ordered.
A performance audit focuses not on irregularities, overpricing, or corruption attending a public works project but on determining whether they are performing in accordance with the “principles of economy, efficiency, and effectiveness” It also looks for ways to recommend improvements. Its primary objective is to determine “whether government resources are used economically or the government agency is able to deliver the intended result and impact.”
The FRMRP for Metro Manila and Surrounding Areas will specifically cover flood control projects implemented in Metro Manila and the provinces of Rizal, Bulacan, Pampanga, and Cavite.
Auditors said the audit was prompted by the need to address devastating floods that repeatedly impacts the region and the increasing “risks posed by overflowing rivers, inadequate drainage systems, and encroaching settlements.”
The COA had also launched a fraud audit on flood control projects to determine alleged collusion among DPWH officials, local government executives, and private contractors who cornered billions worth of flood control funding with little to zero positive impact on the problem.
COMMMISION
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. yesterday said he will form an independent commission that would investigate the alleged irregularities involved in DPWH projects.
The President, in an ambush interview at the launch of the “Turismo Asenso Loan Program,” said the commission would collate all evidence and recommend legal actions to be taken against individuals and entities involved in corruption not only in flood control but in all DPWH projects.
Marcos said an executive order will be issued, specifying the functions and members of the commission.
“We are putting together the EO that will create the independent commission. The independent commission will be the investigative arm so that they will continue to investigate whatever information is received. It will be sent to them. They will investigate it. And they will make recommendations as to what — how to proceed whether we charge them or bring them to the Ombudsman or DOJ (Department of Justice),” he said.
The President could not say who would head the commission yet, but said it would include forensic investigators, lawyers, justices, and prosecutors.
New Public Works Secretary Vince Dizon, in a briefing, said he is not involved in crafting of the EO on the independent body or the body itself since neither he nor the DPWH itself is an investigator.
DECORUM
Reporters covering the House of Representatives yesterday assailed Leyte Rep. Richard Gomez for accusing journalists of being “paid hacks” after they asked him to comment on the allegations of a mayor who linked him to a collapsed flood control project in Matag-ob town.
“We, members of the media covering the House of Representatives, collectively denounce the baseless and spiteful utterances from Rep. Richard Gomez (4th District, Leyte) imputing impropriety in the actions of a number of our colleagues who tried to get his side on a matter of direct bearing to his office and his constituency,” the joint statement signed by more than a dozen reporters from pint, broadcast and online media said.
Rep. Jonathan Clement Abalos (PL, 4Ps), chair of the House Committee on Ethics, said the panel is “preparing for any complaint that may arise.”
The House Media said Gomez’ “unfounded allegations were made with reckless disregard for the personal safety of the journalists involved and to the studied civility by which members of the Lower House and the House Media have always treated each other.”
Gomez, who earlier said there was a “media spin” being funded against him, even posting the contact numbers of the journalists who sought his comment on the allegations of Matag-ob Mayor Bernie Tacoy, who criticized Gomez for his alleged lack of support amid the massive flooding in their district after the collapse of the flood control structure.
According to the Matag-ob Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office, some parts of the Barangay Riverside flood control structure were destroyed.
In his short response to reporters last Thursday, Gomez said the damage would be repaired at no cost to the government. “Just allow the mayor to ride on this season’s most interesting subject matter. This is what keeps him happy,” he said.
The House reporters said the “requests for reactions from the gentleman from Leyte, far from being malicious, were part of a journalist’s ethical practice to accord the other party an opportunity to present his side and refute negative comments directed at him/her if there be any.”
“Notwithstanding the apparent hostility by which the Honorable Gomez views the members of the House Media, we would rather take the high road if only to avoid acrimony at a time when there are much more pressing matters affecting the nation that require both our attentions. We choose courtesy and decorum over animosity,” they said.
Despite what happened, the House Media said its members remain “open to accept any relevant statement or clarification the Honorable Gomez might offer as regards the flood control project in Matag-ob, Leyte that was damaged by the recent heavy rains.”
“The same extends to any other legislative concerns he might have in the future,” they said. – With Jocelyn Reyes and Wendell Vigilia
