“Dizon’s fight is no longer just about building infrastructure; it is about building trust”
WHEN President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. named Vince Dizon as acting Secretary of the Department of Public Works and Highways, it marked more than just another Cabinet change. It was a declaration that reform, long overdue in one of government’s largest agencies, could no longer be delayed.
At the Department of Transportation, Dizon was known as a disruptor, unafraid to challenge status quo practices in pursuit of better, faster, and more transparent delivery of projects.
Today, at DPWH, his mission has sharpened: to clean house, to restore credibility, and to ensure infrastructure is not only built but built properly with integrity.
In just two weeks, Dizon has taken sweeping actions: 1) Ordered courtesy resignations of DPWH’s top and field officials, signaling a full reset; 2) Suspended bidding on all locally funded projects pending thorough review; 3) Abolished DPWH’s internal anti-graft body, transferring investigations to independent authorities; 4) Filed charges against contractors and DPWH personnel implicated in ghost or substandard projects; and, 5) Launched efforts to recover stolen funds — making it clear that accountability means not just punishment but restitution.
As he eloquently put it: “Public funds must be returned to the people. Every peso stolen is a peso denied to communities in need.”
What makes Dizon’s appointment even more consequential is his alignment with key allies in Congress, especially Senator Panfilo “Ping” Lacson. Lacson has emerged as a loud voice demanding accountability, and his support gives extra fuel to Dizon’s push.
In fact, Senator Lacson has positioned himself as Dizon’s Senate-partner in accountability. Lacson has publicly pledged to turn over “damning evidence” regarding “rotten fruits” within DPWH — contractors and personnel allegedly involved in unethical practices.
In a post on social media, he saluted Dizon: “Godspeed, Sec. Vince Dizon. May the force be with you to cleanse the DPWH of greed and self-aggrandizement.”
Lacson has also used his privilege speech in the Senate titled “Flooded Gates of Corruption”to unmask flood control syndicates, naming specific officials and projects, and signaling willingness to follow through with more exposes.
This dynamic synergy between Lacson and Dizon adds political weight.
Dizon has the executive authority; Lacson has the oversight, the investigatory reach, and the power to galvanize public and legislative scrutiny.
Together, they could make it very difficult for corrupt actors to hide since there will be synergy among the executive and legislative branches leading to more transparency, more aligned and synchronized fight against corruption and restoring public trust and confidence among citizens on the government.
A cornerstone of this corruption drive is the recent creation of an Independent Commission for Infrastructure by President Marcos through Executive Order 94.
ICI comprises former DPWH Secretary Rogelio Singson and accountant Rossana Fajardo with Baguio City Mayor Benjie Magalong as special adviser. ICI is tasked with investigating flood control projects and other infrastructure projects in the last 10 years.
Hand in hand with creation of ICC, perhaps the new DPWH chief should also call for the creation of a special court to handle DPWH corruption cases. Such a tribunal could fast-track prosecutions, prevent cases from languishing, and finally make high-level graft in public works both visible and punishable.
Corruption in DPWH is not abstract. Every ghost project means flooded streets. Every substandard bridge risks lives. Every peso lost is a classroom or health center unbuilt.
By filing charges, pursuing recovery of funds, and subjecting projects to independent scrutiny through the ICI and the possible creation of a special court, Dizon is tackling both the symptoms and the root causes of decades of malpractice.
From disruptor at DOTr to crusader at DPWH, Dizon is redefining what public works leadership means. His fight is no longer just about building infrastructure; it is about building trust.
If the ICI gains traction, if stolen funds are returned, and if a special court finally delivers justice, then perhaps DPWH can shed its old image and emerge as a symbol of clean, competent governance.
And history may yet record Dizon not only as a reformer but as a statesman who proved that in government, cleaning up is the hardest project of all — and the most enduring.
(The author, president/chief executive officer of Media Touchstone Ventures, Inc. and president/executive director of the Million Trees Foundation Inc., a non-government outfit advocating tree-planting and environmental protection, is the official biographer of President Fidel V. Ramos.)
