MANILA — Former Ako Bicol congressman Zaldy Co and several former Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) officials have been charged with malversation and graft over a P77.2-million flood control project in Bulacan that was declared completed and paid for but was nowhere to be found during inspection.
The Office of the Ombudsman found probable cause to prosecute Co and former DPWH officials Brice Hernandez, Arjay Domasig, Jaypee Mendoza, Niño Morales, Juanito Mendoza, Floralyn Simbulan, and Christina Pineda.
Co’s staff members John Paul Estrada and Mark Tecsay were also charged.
At the center of the case is a supposed riverbank protection structure along the Balagtas River in Barangay San Juan, Balagtas, Bulacan, which was awarded to SYMS Construction Trading.
Government records indicated that construction began on Feb. 24, 2025 and was completed on May 2 of the same year.
But Ombudsman investigators said an inspection found no trace of the supposedly completed structure, raising questions over how P77.2 million in public funds could have been released for the project.
The anti-graft agency also questioned why payments to the contractor continued to be approved despite alleged discrepancies in documents used to certify the project’s progress and support payment claims.
Investigators said the circumstances indicated the possible participation of the respondents in a scheme that resulted in the diversion of government funds intended for flood control.
The Ombudsman further alleged that Co played a key role in securing the inclusion of projects in the national budget after receiving supposed kickbacks from contractors.
According to the resolution, the alleged scheme involved obtaining funding for projects through their inclusion in the National Expenditure Program and their eventual approval under the General Appropriations Act.
Investigators said the alleged irregularities went beyond the release of an advance payment, as the project was subsequently awarded to SYMS despite indications that there was no genuine intention to construct the riverbank protection structure.
The Ombudsman also held accountable the DPWH personnel responsible for evaluating, inspecting and certifying the project, saying their repeated failure to properly perform their duties went beyond mere administrative mistakes.
Their actions and certifications allegedly facilitated the release and diversion of public funds for a project that investigators later found to be nonexistent or unfinished, the agency said.
The malversation case has been assigned to the Sandiganbayan Fourth Division, while the graft case will be heard by the Fifth Division.
Co is separately facing malversation and graft charges involving an allegedly irregular road dike project in Naujan, Oriental Mindoro.
Hernandez, Domasig, Pineda and the two Mendoza respondents are also facing separate cases alongside former Sen. Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr. over an alleged ghost flood control project in Pandi, Bulacan.
Meanwhile, the Ombudsman dismissed for lack of probable cause the complaint against Co, Alcantara, Estrada and Tecsay for alleged violation of Section 3(b) of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.
A separate perjury complaint against Sally Santos was referred back to the Department of Justice.
Alcantara and Santos, who were admitted into the Witness Protection Program, were granted immunity in cases in which they are expected to testify./PN
