Discaya property vandalized by protesters in Pasig City

Several protesters threw mud, vandalized, and shook the gate of a property of the Discayas in Pasig City on Thursday amid the probe into anomalous flood control projects.

Holding placards, banners, and megaphones, the protesters trooped to the office of the Discaya-owned St. Gerrard Construction. 

The picket, composed of flood victims and militant groups, hurled mud on the gate of the Discayas’ office as they shouted to hold the contractors accountable.

Some of them painted the word “magnanakaw” or plunderer, on the gate of the property.

They also shook and rattled the gate of the contractors’ office as they demanded to bring the Discayas out. 

According to the Discayas’ lawyer, Atty. Cornelio Samaniego III, their camp will file a criminal complaint against the organizer of the protest. 

Meanwhile, members of Anakbayan and Kabataan also gathered in front of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Central Office in Manila to protest the anomalous flood control projects.

“Kahit ilan pang mga kaso ng pangungurakot sa pondo ng bayan, walang nananagot. Ang mga magnanakaw, sa halip na parusahan, ay nalagay pa sa kapangyarihan,” Anakbayan Chairperson Mhing Gomez said in a statement. 

(Even with several cases of embezzling public funds, no one is held accountable. The thieves, instead of being punished, are now in positions of power.)

"Wala tayong aasahan sa gobyernong ito. Dahil gobyerno ang pinaka malaking sindikatong nangungulimbat sa kaban ng bayan,” Gomez added.

(We can't expect anything from this government. This is because the government is the biggest syndicate that is stealing from the public treasury.)

Kabataan Partylist in a separate statement said that students from different organizations and universities participated in the protest at the DPWH office.

“Habang nalulubog sa baha ang buong sambayanan, lumalangoy naman sa nakaw na pondo ang mga opisyales ng DPWH at mga kakuntsaba nilang mga contractors,” Kabataan said.

(While the entire nation is drowning in floods, DPWH officials and their complicit contractors are swimming in stolen funds.)

“Hindi sapat ang pagsisibak lamang, kailangan may managot, at kailangan maisoli ang mga ninakaw nilang pondo ng bayan!” it added.

(Firing them is not enough, someone must be held accountable, and the public funds they stole must be returned!)

President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. has called for an investigation into anomalous flood control projects as many parts of the country have been submerged amid heavy rains in the past months.

In a briefing, Palace Press Officer Undersecretary Atty. Claire Castro said the President does not want the ongoing investigation to result in violence, as due process is being observed.

“We’re not encouraging people to do that. Law enforcement has to maintain the law and order in our country,” Department of Justice Secretary Crispon Remulla said in Jun Veneracion’s “24 Oras” report. 

“Hindi pwedeng pamarisan yung ganyang gawain kasi (that action cannot be a good model because) it can trigger a kind of hysteria that we don’t need,” he added.

Several government agencies, as well as the Senate and the House of Representatives, have launched their respective investigations.

The Philippine Contractors Accreditation Board (PCAB) has revoked the contractor's licenses of nine construction companies owned and controlled by Sara Discaya, who is being questioned amid the ongoing probe into anomalous flood control projects.

In its Resolution No. 075, series of 2025 on September 1, PCAB resolved to revoke immediately the licenses of the following:

• St. Gerrard Construction Gen. Contractor & Dev’t Corporation
• Alpha & Omega Gen. Contractor & Dev’t Corporation
• St. Timothy Construction Corporation
• Amethyst Horizon Builders and Gen.Contractor & Dev’t Corp.
• St. Matthew General Contractor & Development Corporation
• Great Pacific Builders and General Contractor, Inc.
• YPR General Contractor and Construction Supply, Inc.
• Way Maker OPC
• Elite General Contractor and Development Corp.

READ: Sarah Discaya: from early life to Senate probe

The PCAB cited Discaya’s admission in a Senate hearing on Monday of ownership of the nine companies in question which have participated in bidding of government projects.

According to the PCAB, Discaya’s admission “establishes a scheme of joint or multiple bidding participation designed to influence the outcome of public bidding, manipulate results and corner public projects thereby undermining transparency, fairness, and competition in violation of procurement laws and licensing requirements.”

The PCAB concluded that “the continued accreditation of these corporations is inimical to public interest, industry integrity, and government procurement transparency.”

Lawyer Atty. Cornelio Samaniego III on Wednesday clarified that her client Sarah is now associated only with Alpha & Omega firm as she has already divested from the eight other companies.

The Discayas have denied the allegations of irregularities in their flood control projects. —Joviland Rita/ VAL/RF, GMA Integrated News