Owners of construction firms now banned from joining PCAB–DTI chief
Members of the Philippine Contractors Accreditation Board (PCAB), the body that grants licenses to construction firms, will no longer be allowed to own construction companies themselves due to a “conflict of interest,” Trade Secretary Cristina Roque said on Wednesday.
Roque made the announcement after briefing the Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) on how PCAB, an agency under the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), accredits contractors for infrastructure projects.
PCAB has been linked to the massive corruption in the flood control projects of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) as all companies need a PCAB license to join biddings.
Last Sept. 16, Sen. Erwin Tulfo denounced in a privilege speech the abuse and corruption surrounding PCAB, naming board member Erni Baggao, owner of EGB Construction Corp., who bagged flood control projects amounting to P7.7 billion from 2022 to 2025.
Called out by Ping
“And these projects are not only tainted with allegations of overpricing and substandard work, but some are outright ghost projects,” Tulfo said.
Sen. Panfilo “Ping” Lacson has also called for a complete overhaul of PCAB, which he described as a “low-key yet corrupt-ridden regulatory body” following allegations of licenses for sale.
On Sept. 3, lawyer Herbert Matienzo resigned as PCAB executive director for “personal reasons” amid allegations that the board was involved in accrediting construction companies in exchange for money.
PCAB board member Baggao followed suit for “personal and health reasons,” while the term of another board member, Arthur Escalante, lapsed in May.
According to Roque, all of the three members that make up PCAB will soon be replaced and that she is just waiting for their appointment from Malacañang.
“They’re presidential appointees. But of course, we’ve submitted a lot of names. They have to have 10 years of experience. They’re actually very well respected in the construction [industry],” she added.
Added safeguards
Roque said the DTI has also added another process to ensure that only qualified contractors get PCAB licenses.
“The licenses before are approved by the PCAB Board. What will happen now is that the license will pass to the office of [DTI] secretary for checking, and then from there, we will give it to the PCAB Board,” Roque said.
“So now, there’s an additional check, which is in the Office of the Secretary, to make sure that they are double-checked, that they’re really following the rules set by PCAB and the DTI,” she added.
Roque also said PCAB is working on the revocation of the licenses of at least 15 contractors involved in flood control project anomalies.
“There are other more contractors also that we need to investigate further. I cannot really give the number because as we go along, they’re increasing in number,” she said.
