Former Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) first district engineer Henry Alcantara on Thursday alleged that bogus flood control projects were not limited to Bulacan, but were also carried out in other districts on the orders of Ako Bicol Party-list Rep. Zaldy Co.
“Upon the instruction of Cong. Zaldy Co, sabi niya, ‘masyado nang malaki yung Bulacan. Pwede ka bang tumulong na makapagbigay din sa ibang (Bulacan is getting big already. Can you help provide for other) districts?’” he said during the Senate’s sixth hearing in the anomalous flood control projects.
This prompted Alcantara to offer projects to other districts, with a similar scheme as the flood control projects in Bulacan 1st District. He earlier said 25 percent of the projects’ costs all go to Co. “It was the same. The cut was 25 percent.”
Excluding the tax and all “commitments” given to politicians and DPWH officials, all projects were left with only 30 to 35 percent of their costs for actual operation, according to Alcantara.
Alcantara then submitted to Co a list of district engineers interested in the infrastructure projects.
He said projects were also placed in Tarlac first and second districts, Pampanga third district and Bulacan second districts.
Alcantara noted that the congressmen in the named districts were not involved in their transaction, unless the district engineers informed them of the existence of the projects.
If the congressman was unaware, the project is called “sagasa,” or was implemented without the knowledge of the congressman in the project’s location.
If the congressman was aware, he/she was given a “parking fee” of five percent.
Alcantara said he does not know if there was any congressman involved in the districts.
“I think the district engineer in charge can answer if they have discussions with a politician or not,” he said. “That is how powerful a district engineer is,” Senator JV Ejercito pointed out.
