More cases to be filed in flood control mess soon—Palace
PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is himself waiting for key resolutions from the Office of the Ombudsman and the Department of Justice on anomalous flood control projects, the Palace said as it assured the public that more cases will be filed amid criticisms that not a single “big fish” has been held accountable.
Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said in just over four months, the administration has recorded unprecedented developments in corruption cases tied to flood control projects.
“When the President said some people would not have a merry Christmas, those who were jailed definitely did not have a merry Christmas… The President’s term is not yet over. Many more things will happen,” she said.
“More investigations will be conducted, more cases will be filed. The issuance of warrants of arrest, however, will be within the jurisdiction of Sandiganbayan and other regular courts.”
“In more than four months, there have been arrests, warrants of arrest issued, some have gone into hiding, and others are negotiating and returning most of their kickbacks—something that never happened under any administration,” Castro added.
As of December 19, the Anti-Money Laundering Council said it has frozen 6,538 bank accounts, 367 insurance policies, 255 motor vehicles, 178 real properties, and 16 e-wallet accounts of individuals linked to allegedly anomalous flood control projects.
AMLC said the total value of the frozen assets has reached P20.3 billion and is expected to increase as the investigation continues.
The government has also been able to recover at least P248 million from individuals involved in the flood control mess.
“The President is also waiting for the resolutions of the Ombudsman and the DOJ. He wants strong evidence against all those who may be involved, and due process must be observed,” Castro said.
Assistant Ombudsman Mico Clavano earlier said the Office of the Ombudsman must “balance speed, quality and due diligence.”
He said the pronouncement of Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla that arrest warrants against senators Francis Escudero, Joel Villanueva, and Jinggoy Estrada as well former senators Bong Revilla and Nancy Binay may be available by December 15 was a personal deadline.
“Obviously, there is a process and as per his pronouncements, it is not a strict deadline. It is a deadline that he imposed on himself,” Clavano said.
Since investigations into anomalous flood control projects started, over a dozen individuals have already been detained, mostly officials and personnel of the Department of Public Works and Highways, as well as private contractors, including Sarah Discaya.
Former lawmaker Zaldy Co, who was tagged as among those behind the anomalies, remains at large.
Earlier, members of the Makabayan bloc at the House of Representatives lamented that not a single “big fish” in the flood control scandal has been put behind bars.
“The deadline has passed, yet not a single ‘big fish’ has been apprehended,” the Makabayan lawmakers said. “So much for ‘some people will spend Christmas in jail.’”
Mamamayang Liberal Rep. Leila de Lima said the public must continue to demand accountability as she urged the government to intensify its fight against corruption.
“We have to double our fight against corruption because the central personalities and their cohorts are trying to muddle or weaken our efforts to hold them accountable,” De Lima said.
