‘If it can be found without an iota of doubt that Mark Villar or any official — past and present — of the DPWH is robbing the Filipino people blind with all these ghost projects, then all heads must roll.’
For years, the power couple of Manny and Cynthia Villar has fortified their empire in politics and business.
If not for the unexpected death of Cory Aquino in August 2009, Noynoy Aquino would not have been able to snatch the 2010 presidency from Manny Villar, who portrayed himself as a self-made billionaire, earning the nickname “Mr. Sipag at Tiyaga.”
With a net worth of $17.2 billion, Forbes listed Manny Villar as the richest individual in the Philippines, according to the “World’s Billionaires List: The Richest in 2025.”
On the other hand, Cynthia Villar, whose maiden name is Aguilar, also carved herself as the richest lawmaker in both the House of Representatives and the Senate.
However, despite her enormous wealth, she lost miserably in the Aguilar bailiwick in Las Piñas last elections when she ran again for a congressional seat.
Was it an ominous sign?
Now, it appears that there are cracks in the Villar Empire.
Just recently, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) imposed administrative fines totaling ₱12 million on Villar Land Holdings Corporation.
Eleven of its directors and officers — including Manny Villar and his three children, Paolo, Senators Mark and Camille — for repeatedly failing to file required financial reports and issuing misleading public disclosures.
Subsequently, SEC Chairman Francis Lim sternly warned that further regulatory actions may be taken against Villar Land Holdings Corporation as the investigation into the company continues.
Meanwhile, in the Senate, Mark Villar is being hounded by his past.
Handpicked by the feisty Rodrigo Roa Duterte to lead the Department of Public Works and Highways, Mark has to prove that there was a flood-control master plan during his watch, from 2016 to 2022.
Villar said he is aware that there are master plans in the DPWH. He said some are foreign-funded, each floodwater basin with a master plan.
Oh, yes. But where are the receipts?
Well, it is public knowledge that the DPWH was handed to Mark on a silver platter, so to speak, by Duterte, who had admitted — all and sundry — that he was compelled to run for president in 2016 after receiving bags of money from Manny and Cynthia Villar.
Former DPWH chief Rogelio Singson—who served from July 2010 to June 2016 under the Aquino administration—said he left a ₱351-billion flood-control master plan to the Duterte administration. That was when Mark Villar took over the helm.
What happened to the ₱351-billion flood-control master plan supposedly inherited by Mark Villar?
The Villars are lucky that President Marcos Jr. still trusts them, even if they reek of Duterte stench, as Camille was still included in the Alyansa senatorial slate, even if presidential sister Imee was yanked out at the last stretch of the campaign.
If it can be found without an iota of doubt that Mark Villar or any official — past and present — of the DPWH is robbing the Filipino people blind with all these ghost projects, then all heads must roll.
They should be prosecuted and, if found guilty, be jailed.
No mercy for those gluttons who pocketed the hard-earned taxpayers’ money.
