P5.3-billion projects proposed for Road Board in 2018

MANILA, Philippines — Scores of lawmakers including two senators, as well as middle-level officials and personnel of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) have proposed projects worth P5.3 billion for this year to the corruption-tainted Road Board.

Based on a 15-page list House Majority Leader Rolando Andaya Jr. released yesterday, two senators, 41 members of the House of Representatives, three DPWH regional directors and 35 district engineers, who are also DPWH personnel, submitted the proposals.

The biggest proponent is Rep. Jericho Nograles of party-list group Puwersa ng Bayaning Atleta (PBA), who sought P414 million for seven projects, including P150 million for “asphalt overlay with reflectorized thermoplastic pavement markings” of a stretch of the Cagayan de Oro City Airport-Bukidnon Road.

The asphalting project is listed jointly under the names of Nograles and DPWH Regional Director Virgilio Eduarte.

Rodolfo Fariñas of Ilocos Norte followed Nograles with P277 million for five projects in his province and Abraham Tolentino of Cavite with P150 million for three asphalt overlay with reflectorized markings projects costing P50 million each.

Commenting on the list, the PBA representative said, “I have referred many projects nationwide to all agencies including Road Board. It is entirely up to the agencies to act on my referred projects. I do not know if there are approvals or disapprovals by the agencies. As to this specific list, this is my first time to see this list.”

Fariñas said, “My district has not received any Road Board fund under the present administration, even when I was majority leader. In fact, it was (former) speaker (Pantaleon) Alvarez and I who were the principal authors for the abolition of the Road Board, and such was approved on third and final reading under our watch.”

He said the House, under their leadership, sent the abolition bill to the Senate, “which adopted our version when it sensed that the new leadership of the HOR wanted to recall the bill, which it actually did.”

“You should ask the present HOR leadership the reason for its desire to continue with the present Road Board, even to the point of doing an unprecedented act of recalling a bill already finally approved and transmitted to the Senate,” he said.

Andaya had said the House recalled the bill because President Duterte wanted the Road Board to be retained.

The list released by Andaya has a covering statement: “Contrary to the fake news being peddled: no request nor projects for the district of either Speaker Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo or the majority leader.”

He said the document came from the Road Board.

Budget Secretary Benjamin Diokno earlier said President Duterte had ordered him not to release any money from Road Board collections totaling P45 billion because the Chief Executive wanted the agency to be abolished.

The two senators in the list are Sonny Angara and Franklin Drilon.

Angara and his aunt Aurora Rep. Bellaflor Castillo submitted three projects for their province worth P86 million.

Sought for comment, Angara said, “It must be an old listing. We did not propose projects for this year.”

Drilon has a single proposal under his name: P16 million for the installation of lights along Sen. Benigno Aquino Jr. Avenue in Iloilo.

Other House members with large amounts of project proposals include Nancy Catamco of North Cotabato, P65 million, and Prospero Pichay Jr. of Surigao del Sur, P60 million.

Most of the proponents submitted one or two projects. Besides Nograles, other party-list representatives presented projects for funding.

DPWH regional directors and district engineers sought bigger amounts than most lawmakers.

Director Danilo Dequito of Region IV-B proposed projects worth P293.5 million for Palawan, while Ador Canlas of Cebu had P167 million in project proposals.

Some P218 million worth of projects are listed under director Edgar Tabacon of Samar-Leyte and district engineer Margarita Junia.