FORMER Bulacan District Engineer Henry Alcantara on Friday returned P110-million to the government, the amount he purportedly obtained from flood control projects.
In a press briefing, Justice Acting Secretary Fredderick Vida said return of the money was part of the restitution efforts of the Department of Justice (DOJ).
“This is a portion of the amount… It is based on their statements that they accumulated from several transactions. This is part of the P300-million committed amount for restitution only for those particular cases mentioned,” he said.
Vida explained that the P110 million surrendered by Alcantara was computed by the panel evaluating the engineer’s documents.
Among the factors considered for the partial delivery of the total amount includes his detention in the Senate.
Alcantara’s restitution was also part of the conditions set by the DOJ before he can be considered a state witness.
“This is a demonstration of their good faith… This is a step so that we can achieve justice. This is the recovery of people’s money so this is a very important part,” said Vida.
“His discharge from criminal liability is only for that amount. The DOJ does not grant blanket immunity to everyone else, so if we discover that he is involved in another matter, he is not absolved of liability there,” Vida added.
He clarified that the provisional admission to the Witness Protection Program (WPP) only covers the matters covered by the cases involving the said amount.
Alcantara’s camp expressed hopes that he would be admitted as state witness following the restitution.
The DOJ chief gave assurance that the funds returned by Alcantara would go back to public funds after validation by the Bureau of Treasury.
Alcantara served as Bulacan’s first district engineer, handling 13 localities, including flood-prone areas in the province, among them Hagonoy, Baliwag, Calumpit, and Malolos.
His office had the largest project cost among the DPWH’s implementing offices, with a total of 450 flood control projects worth P28.9 billion between 2022 and 2025, based on data from the Sumbong ng Pangulo website.
Alcantara was dismissed from government service after being found guilty of multiple administrative offenses, including disloyalty to the Republic, grave misconduct, gross neglect of duty, and conduct prejudicial to the best interest of the service.
