Drilon faces another plunder complaint from ex-Iloilo Rep. Syjuco

(Updated 7:42 p.m.) Senate President Franklin Drilon was slapped on Friday with another plunder complaint by his political rival, former Iloilo Rep. Augusto Syjuco Jr., this time for an allegedly overpriced walkway near the Iloilo River.

 

Dante Garcia, a member of Syjuco's staff, said the plunder complaint was filed on Friday morning before the Office of the Ombudsman by the former lawmaker's lawyers.

 

In his 32-page complaint, Syjuco alleged that Drilon gave P70 million in priority development assistance fund (PDAF) for the Iloilo Esplanade I project, which the former congressman described as "dreadfully overpriced."

 

"Adding altogether the construction of the retaining wall, slope protection, landscaping and amenities to complete the Iloilo Esplanade I is overwhelmingly incredible. This P70-million Iloilo Esplanade I project is absolutely a windfall to the pocket of respondent Franklin Magtunao Drilon," the complaint read.

 

GMA News Online sought Drilon's comment on the new plunder complaint, but his media relations officer said their camp has not yet received a copy of the document.

 

A check with the Department of Budget and Management (DBM), however, showed that Drilon did not allocate any portion of his PDAF to the Iloilo Esplanade I in 2011, when Syjuco said the project was undertaken.

Syjuco also questioned the additional P13.5 million PDAF allocated by Drilon for the improvement of the Iloilo Esplanade project in 2012. 
 

"Obviously, the hasty allocation... is a scam to fund a minute, if not inexistent, project or program of work purposely to embezzle the public treasury," the former congressman said.

 

He added that the Iloilo Esplanade project also supposedly adversely affected marine life in the Iloilo River.

 

Late last month, Syjuco also filed a plunder complaint against Drilon for alleged irregularities in the construction of the Iloilo Hall of Justice in 1992.

Drilon, however, dismissed Syjuco's complaint as a form of "malicious political harassment."

 

Syjuco himself is currently facing a graft case before the Sandiganbayan for alleged irregular disbursement of funds when the former congressman was director general of the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) in 2007.

Graft for Abad couple

In a separate complaint, Syjuco also accused Budget Secretary Florencio Abad of "unconscionable" and "exorbitant" pork barrel releases to the lone congressional district of Batanes, which is currently represented by the Cabinet official's wife, Rep. Henedina Abad, in Congress.

Syjuco claimed that Batanes Rep. Abad received P892.5 million in pork barrel funds from 2011 to 2012 due to a "strong alliance for corruption" with her husband.

Syjuco said the Abad couple violated the graft law and the code of conduct for public officials due to these "excess" fund releases.

The DBM website however showed that Rep. Abad was only allocated P138.85 million during this period--P46.35 million in 2011 and P92.5 million in 2012.— Andreo Calonzo/RSJ/KBK, GMA News