DPWH starts Abra probe of corruption in infra projects
BAGUIO CITY—Abra, the Cordillera province of former Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin, is now under scrutiny in an ongoing internal corruption probe by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) aimed at uncovering multibillion-peso fraud and kickbacks in government infrastructure projects, Public Works Secretary Vince Dizon said here on Saturday .
Speaking on the sidelines of this year’s Baguio Flower Festival Street Dancing Parade, Dizon said an initial investigation “found something,” but he did not provide further details.
“Undersecretary (and retired police general) Arthur Bisnar, who is leading the investigations, has already gone to Abra and is reviewing the various projects there,” he added.
When asked if there were links to other projects flagged in previous congressional inquiries and by the Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI), which are now under review by the Office of the Ombudsman, Dizon said the connections have not yet been established.
“But meron nang nakita si Usec Bisnar (Usec Bisnar has uncovered something), and he will be making the proper referrals to the Ombudsman, maybe by March,” Dizon said.
The DPWH chief added that Baguio Mayor Benjamin Magalong, a former ICI special adviser, had repeatedly pressed him to look into Abra.
Closely monitored
Abra has not been directly cited in past congressional probes, although it is included in a list of 61 Cordillera flood control projects worth P3.417 billion last year, which anticorruption activists in Baguio have been closely monitoring, according to Gabriel Siscar, a leader of the Kabataan party list group, during a Feb. 23 forum marking the 40th anniversary of the People Power Revolution.
Ten of these projects, with a combined allocation of P842 million, are in Abra.
Bersamin, a former chief justice, left Malacañang in November last year, shortly after a prime suspect in the scandal linked him to a P52-million insertion in the 2025 budget law, amid growing evidence that influential officials had padded government infrastructure expenditures to conceal massive kickbacks.
Bersamin has strongly denied exerting any control over the budget process and defended his grandnephew, Presidential Legislative Liaison Office Undersecretary Adrian Bersamin, who was also implicated.
The former chief justice’s brother, Eustaquio, is the current governor of Abra. Another sibling, Luis “Chito” Bersamin Jr., was assassinated in 2008 at a wedding.
Abra’s La Paz town is also the registered address of contractor Silverwolves Construction Corp., whose assets were recently frozen due to alleged involvement in ghost projects in La Union. Assets linked to Benguet Rep. Eric Yap and his brother, ACT-CIS Rep. Edvic Yap, were also frozen amid reports that the Benguet lawmaker previously owned Silverwolves.
Anomalies involving Benguet projects, such as overpriced rock netting, are being watched by activists, Siscar added.
Meanwhile, Dizon said the DPWH is designing a new manual on mountain road engineering to address extreme weather and better manage the high costs of constructing and maintaining highland road systems.
“Keeping mountain roads sturdy and efficient has been achieved in many countries, but Philippine road engineers have lagged behind in adopting these practices,” he said.
Improving technology and financing for road maintenance nationwide was among the instructions given by President Marcos after he revealed public works anomalies in last year’s State of the Nation Address, Dizon added.
On Sunday, Dizon revisited portions of Kennon Road inspected last year by Mr. Marcos, including a damaged rockshed—a tunnel built to withstand rockfalls—that remains unrepaired as of February.
“We simply did not have the funds” to complete repairs under last year’s budget, he explained, but noted that Kennon Road remains a “priority.”
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