Surigao del Norte gov keeps his hands off calls for probe into infra scandal
SAN FRANCISCO, AGUSAN DEL SUR—Surigao del Norte Gov. Robert Lyndon Barbers said he would keep his hands off the mounting calls among provincial legislators here to investigate ghost infrastructure projects in the province.
According to Barbers, it was not true that he supported the call made by Provincial Board (PB) Member John Cubillan, his ally and party mate, to probe several infrastructure projects here already listed as “100 percent complete” in the portal of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), but were actually missing, half-built or altogether nonexistent upon inspection.
Cubillan had sounded the alarm during the Oct. 20 session of the PB, prompting other PB members to call for a probe.
“I did not call for any probe. I’m [keeping my] hands off to prevent (giving the issue any hint of) political color,” said Barbers, clarifying reports that came out of the media.
The ‘real multo’
As Filipinos honor their dearly departed during All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day, Surigao del Norte residents in the mainland and on Siargao Island found that real ghosts came in the form of infrastructure projects like roads, seawalls and flood barriers that were supposed to be implemented but only vanished in thin air, noted Cubillan.
Cubillan called the list a case of “systematic falsification.”
“Who would have thought that our greatest multo (ghost) is the one that got away? The stories we’d tell to scare the children?” Cubillan asked in his privilege speech during the session.
Among the projects he was referring to were the rehabilitation of the Roxas-Sta. Paz Road in Siargao covered under contract ID No. 23NI0034; the construction of a seawall in Barangay Bitaug, Burgos town, covered under contract ID No. 22NI0056; and the improvement of Barangay Road in San Isidro, covered under contract ID No. 24NI0012—all of which were all reflected as completed on the DPWH portal.
Cubillan also cited the rehabilitation of the junction Surigao-Dapa-Del Carmen Road covered under contract ID No. 22NG0061, which also appeared as “completed” in the DPWH portal, but was found to be either abandoned or remained untouched.
Several concrete bridges in Surigao del Norte’s second district—completed during the tenure of former Rep. Robert Ace Barbers, the governor’s brother, also came under fire after residents shared images online of their visible cracks.
Among these projects, the Bonifacio-Poctoy Bridge connecting Surigao city’s barangays Poctoy and Bonifacio drew particular concern, as critics alleged substandard work.
Fake news
Former congressman Barbers, in a recent press conference here, said that reports questioning his projects were “fake news” as construction oversight belonged to project engineers and contractors, not directly to him.
Local media also reported here how Boometrix Development Corp.—a company closely linked to the Matugas family—garnered billions in government projects across the province, with many structures formally declared finished but which were either poorly done, delayed or altogether absent.
Barangay Captain Ariel Nogaliza of Barangay San Mateo in Burgos town has expressed dismay over an irrigation project that remained unusable years after its completion.
Dapa, Siargao Island Mayor Elizabeth Matugas, mother of Boometrix owner Ronald Abejo, has said in a radio interview that she already relinquished her affiliation with the company since she became mayor in 2013.
PB Member Jeff Larong insisted the ghost projects investigation should also cover the second district in the mainland Surigao del Norte, but his motion for a resolution was not approved by the PB.
