Discaya firms crop up in DOJ projects, too
The Department of Justice (DOJ) has placed several infrastructure contracts under review following the revelation that two contractors involved in the construction of the P2.4-billion National Bureau of Investigation headquarters are owned by the Discayas.
In a press briefing on Wednesday, Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said the government might get a different builder for the new offices of the NBI, a line agency under his department.
“That is our only option left since the old builder’s license has been revoked. They can no longer continue with the project, and nothing has been finished yet so they have to return the funds,” Remulla said.
Only the foundation has been laid on its old site along Taft Avenue in Manila since construction began in 2022.
Next steps
NBI Director Jaime Santiago has ordered an investigation into the contract, which was obtained before he assumed leadership of the bureau.
“It was the [Department of Public Works and Highways] that arranged the bidding on which contractor to get. I saw … two contractors, construction companies, both Discaya-owned,” Santiago said.
He, however, only named one of the two contractors, Way Maker General Contractor OPC, and said he could not recall the second one.
The Discayas—Pacifico “Curlee” II and his wife Cezarah “Sarah”—are two of the construction company owners who have been linked to anomalous flood control projects. Two of their companies—Alpha & Omega Gen. Contractor & Development Corp. and St. Timothy Construction Corp.—were identified as among the top 15 contractors that received the bulk of government flood control deals nationwide.
The Discayas told a recent Senate hearing that DPWH officials and lawmakers solicited money from them, claiming that they were coerced to do so.
Santiago, meanwhile, said the bureau would coordinate with Public Works Secretary Vince Dizon to determine the next steps for the NBI building, including whether construction should be suspended while investigation was ongoing.
“I’m not saying that there’s something wrong here, but we will be investigating what is going on. Our building might not be built; the iron might be substandard. When we are there, then an earthquake strikes, the building might collapse,” he added.
Same officers
Santiago also revealed that as many as eight of the top contractors that cornered majority of flood control projects shared the same set of officers.
“We have also already coordinated with the Securities and Exchange Commission checking the board of directors of the 15 contractors [that were mentioned by President Marcos] … initially we found that some of these contractors, at least seven or eight of them, have interlocking directors,” Santiago said.
“[They] have the same sets of officers, so we really saw a rigging of bidding process,” he added.
He, however, did not identify the contractors pending further investigation.
Santiago also announced that Remulla has created a task force to probe the alleged corruption in infrastructure projects. This is different from the Independent Commission for Infrastructure set up by President Marcos.
Tagged as the Public Works Corruption and Bid Rigging Task Force, Santiago said it is composed of prosecutors, certified public accountants, engineers and NBI agents.
He also bared that “collated information” was set to be submitted to the DOJ for case buildup, this time involving flood control projects they investigated in the provinces of Bulacan and Mindoro. —REPORTS FROM ZACARIAN SARAO AND PHILIPPINE NEWS AGENCY
