ICI to finalize flood control probe referrals to Ombudsman amid resignations

The Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) on Friday said it will now focus on finalizing referrals that will be forwarded to the Office of the Ombudsman in connection with the flood control probe.

In a statement, ICI chairperson Andres Reyes Jr. noted that the Commission was created with a “clear, time-bound mandate” to gather evidence, establish facts, and propose corrective measures.

“To ensure the fulfillment of its mandate, the Commission will now focus on finalizing the  remaining items that will be submitted to the Office of the Ombudsman in order to strengthen and  add to the growing number of cases that will eventually be filed with the courts, and hold those  involved accountable,” he said.

“The Commission remains fully committed to submitting all its final recommendations and  ensuring that the appropriate institutions — particularly the Ombudsman — have everything they  need to bring these cases forward,” he added.

Reyes issued the statement following the resignation of Commissioner Rossana Fajardo, which he said, “comes at a natural point in the Commission's work.”

Earlier this month, Commissioner Rogelio “Babes” Singson also resigned from the ICI. 

Since its creation, Reyes said the ICI has already filed eight referrals and cases with the Ombudsman, excluding joint referrals with the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH). 

These cases involve nearly 100 individuals, including senators, congressmen, senior and mid-level former and current DPWH officials, contractors, and a sitting commissioner of the Commission on Audit (COA).

The Ombudsman has already filed three cases in court, resulting in the arrest of 16 individuals for non-bailable offenses including contractor Sarah Discaya.

With the help of the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) and other agencies, more than P20.3 billion worth of assets have been frozen, covering thousands of bank accounts, insurance policies, motor vehicles, real properties, e-wallets, securities accounts, and air assets such as planes and helicopters.

The ICI said it has consolidated a series of reform recommendations intended to prevent a repeat of large-scale infrastructure irregularities:

• Recommending the automatic furnishing to the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) of  all DPWH contracts and transactions exceeding PhP 30 million, to expose tax evasion,  underdeclaration, and illicit enrichment by contractors; 
• Recommending the opening of the national budget process to full public scrutiny,  especially in bicameral conference committees, by mandating the disclosure of  proponents, insertions, amendments, and minutes for all major infrastructure and flood control items; 
• Binding inter-agency coordination among the Department of Budget and  Management (DBM), COA, DPWH, Department of Justice (DOJ), BIR, AMLC, and  the Philippine National Police (PNP), to enable real-time sharing of records and the  conduct of parallel criminal, administrative, and financial investigations;
• Establishing an inter-agency Technical Working Group to relentlessly pursue  restitution and recovery of public funds lost through anomalous flood-control and  infrastructure projects; 
• Recommending the immediate suspension of payments for projects under serious  review until their physical existence, progress, and compliance are independently verified; 
• Recommending the establishment of a centralized national registry and blacklisting  system for contractors to permanently bar repeat offenders involved in ghost projects,  fraud, and substandard works; 
• Recommending that the Office of the Ombudsman institutionalize stricter conflict of-interest screening, including mandatory cross-checking of Statements of Assets,  Liabilities and Net Worth with corporate and procurement records, to promptly detect and  prosecute concealed financial interests; 
• Recommending the strengthening of whistleblower protection and independent  reporting mechanisms, including secure hotlines and legal support, to encourage insiders  to come forward without fear; 
• Institutionalizing public live-streaming of the Commission’s investigative hearings, to  ensure transparency, deter intimidation, and restore public trust; 
• Recommending the institutionalization of a permanent, independent fact-finding  body on large-scale infrastructure corruption, through the proposed Independent  People’s Commission and Independent Commission Against Infrastructure Corruption, to  carry forward this work beyond the life of the ICI

Reyes said, “The public can be assured that accountability continues, and the  process that the ICI began will move toward its proper legal conclusion.”

Meanwhile, opposition lawmakers expressed belief that ICI is already at its "end."

“This can very well be the end of ICI. Dapat kasi meron nang ICAIC by now,” House Deputy Minority Leader Leila de Lima, a former Justice chief, said in reference to the Independent Commission Against Infrastructure Corruption (ICAIC).

Akbayan party-list Rep. Perci Cendaña, for his part, said ICI was marred with more resignations than achievements.

“Ba't imbis na ulo ng mga korap, puro resignations ang binibigay sa atin ng ICI? Two out of three down, Bibingo na ang ICI  (Instead of targeting those who are corrupt, all ICI gave us are resignations; it is about to hit bingo),” Cendaña said. —AOL, GMA Integrated News