P15 billion military projects of DPWH unusable

MANILA, Philippines — The latest Senate hearing on the budget of the Department of National Defense (DND) has unearthed some P15 billion worth of allocations that ended up in uncompleted and unusable projects of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) for the military from 2023 to 2025.

The revelation prompted the Senate finance committee chaired by Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian to stop the Tatag ng Imprastraktura para sa Kapayapaan at Seguridad (TIKAS) Program of the DPWH and transfer its 2026 allocation of P3 billion directly to the DND.

Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro Jr. also revealed during the hearing last Tuesday that he planned to arrange an inspection of the unfinished projects with Public Works Secretary Vince Dizon so he could gather more evidence in preparation for possible filing of charges against erring officials and their cohorts.

“We proposed that it be scrapped already and all implementation be by the DND-AFP,” Teodoro said, describing the DPWH TIKAS projects as nothing more than drainage system and firing ranges that are “not part of the core infrastructure-based development program.”

“This does not fall in line anymore with our strategic basing and operational security requirements for hardened structures and henceforth these will not be pursued anymore, yet recovery must be done,” Teodoro said.

He explained that there are 944 approved projects under the TIKAS program, of which 648 have reached only the first phase and falsely declared completed.

He said funding for the DPWH projects is done in phases, but is only released in the first year.

“I fully support the proposal of the chair,” Teodoro said, referring to Gatchalian’s proposal to transfer TIKAS funds in full to the DND. Sen. Ronald dela Rosa agreed to the proposal and added in jest that “tikas” is a Visayan term for “cheater.”

“We’ll see if we can add, so those projects can be completed. So the goal here is to help the DND complete all of those partly completed projects, because they’re getting wasted,” Gatchalian said, to the applause of military officers at the hearing, including Armed Forces chief Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr.

Teodoro said the P3-billion allocation for 2026 may not be enough to finish the partly completed TIKAS projects, including some important ones like barracks for military personnel.

Gatchalian, in a statement, vowed to have the budget transfer done as he particularly pointed out unfinished DPWH projects for the Philippine Air Force (PAF) in Pasay City: two multipurpose buildings worth P72 million and P51 million falsely tagged as completed; and two other unspecified PAF projects, each valued at P60 million and P17 million.

Go supports DND

At the hearing, Sen. Bong Go, vice chairman of the committee on national defense, voiced his support for the DND and its attached agencies, emphasizing his continued adherence to the principle of protecting and empowering the nation’s uniformed personnel – a value he said he learned from former president Rodrigo Duterte.

Go also highlighted his principal authorship of Republic Act No. 12177, or the Free Legal Assistance to Military and Uniformed Personnel Act, which ensures legal protection for soldiers and law enforcers who may have a run in with the law while performing their official duties.

“As the lifeblood of our nation’s defense and security, our soldiers have often faced dangerous situations that jeopardize their lives and limbs. For these reasons, I principally authored RA 12177 or the Free Legal Assistance to MUPs (Military and Uniformed Personnel) Act, which provides free legal aid to MUPs involved in cases related to the performance of duty,” he said.