Silence from House on list of contractors

MANILA, Philippines — At the House of Representatives, silence greeted President Marcos’ release yesterday of a list of 15 contractors who have cornered about a fifth of flood control projects nationwide since 2022.

One of the companies mentioned by Marcos, Sunwest Inc., is linked to Ako Bicol party-list Rep. Elizaldy Co and his brother Christopher, the former representative of the party-list.

Zaldy Co had declared that he divested his shares in the company in 2019 when he was elected congressman. He headed the House appropriations committee in the 19th Congress.

Sunwest has yet to issue a statement on the matter.

Amid the possible involvement of lawmakers in the 15 contractors, Navotas Rep. Toby Tiangco expressed full support for Marcos’ “bold and necessary move to expose and confront the staggering anomalies” in the country’s flood control programs.

“The revelation that 6,021 projects worth over P350 billion or more than 60 percent of the total number of projects lack basic project details is not just alarming; it is unacceptable,” Tiangco said.

In a statement, the lawmaker also claimed it was “more disturbing” for him to learn that “only 15 contractors cornered 20 percent of the entire P545-billion budget,” raising serious questions about fairness, transparency and potential corruption in project implementation.

“As representative of Navotas, a city that is below sea level, I know firsthand what’s at stake. Our people endure rising waters, damaged homes, disrupted livelihoods and threats to health and safety. Every peso wasted or misused on flood control is a betrayal of communities like ours,” he said.