THE Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) and several government agencies were scheduled to hold their 8th Technical Working Group (TWG) meeting on Asset Recovery on Tuesday, Feb. 3.
“The Technical Working Group (TWG) for Asset Recovery, chaired by lawyer Renato Paraiso as acting executive director of the Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center, will conduct its eighth meeting to discuss ongoing inter-agency coordination efforts,” the ICI stated in its advisory.
Member agencies possessing registration, regulatory, and supervisory authority over monetary, real estate, and movable assets will provide updates on the piece of property that have been identified and tagged within their respective jurisdictions.
The ICI is tasked with investigating irregularities in flood control projects involving lawmakers, public works officials, and private contractors.
Participants consisted of representatives from the Bureau of Internal Revenue, the Department of Justice, the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines, the Land Registration Authority, the Land Transportation Office, the Maritime Industry Authority, the Construction Industry Authority of the Philippines, the Office of the Ombudsman, the Department of Trade and Industry, the Anti-Money Laundering Council, the Bureau of Customs, the National Bureau of Investigation, the Philippine National Police, and the Department of Public Works and Highways, among others.
ICI chairman Andres Reyes Jr. said the TWG was focused on strategies to prosecute all parties implicated in the corruption scheme associated with the flood control projects.
On Monday, the Bureau of Customs (BOC) announced another public auction of luxury vehicles seized from Pacifico Discaya and his wife Sarah who were among the private contractors under investigation for their role in a flood control scandal.
The auction, set Wednesday at 10 a.m., will involve ten vehicles, including two rare 2017 and 2019 Bugatti Chirons. Previously, five vehicles were auctioned for a total of P47.762 million.
Customs Commissioner Ariel Nepomuceno said the auction proceeds would go to government coffers.
The ICI, in close coordination with the BOC, has also taken into custody luxury vehicles valued over P140 million, linked to former Ako Bicol party-list Rep. Elizaldy Co who was at the epicenter of the flood control mess.
Former government engineer Henry Alcantara has returned P110 million, deemed crucial to his bid as a state witness in the investigation and subsequent prosecution of those cited as complicit in the flood control scandal.
Alcantara was responsible for managing flood control initiatives across Bulacan, which included multiple flood-prone areas such as Hagonoy, Baliwag, Calumpit, and Malolos.
