Flood contractors cited in contempt

THE SENATE blue-ribbon committee cited in contempt several contractors that failed to attend its inquiry into the alleged misuse of billions of pesos in flood control funds.

During the hearing on Monday, Senator Ronald “Bato” M. dela Rosa moved to cite in contempt contractors who were not able to attend the Senate probe. The motion was seconded by Senator Jose “Jinggoy” P. Ejercito Estrada.

Committee Chairman Senator Rodante D. Marcoleta immediately approved the motion allowing an arrest warrant to be issued.

“All persons invited and properly served with subpoenas but did not appear in the hearing are hereby cited in contempt, preparatory to the eventual issuance of a warrant of arrest,” he said.

Last month, the committee had issued summons to contractors that failed to appear during its first hearing.

At the same hearing, Senator Emmanuel Joel J. Villanueva also moved to subpoena the Commission on Audit’s (CoA) report on the country’s flood control projects.

Earlier, CoA Chairperson Gamaliel A. Cordoba ordered the initiation of a performance audit on government flood control projects across the country.

The Blue Ribbon Committee is currently conducting a probe on flood control projects that President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. flagged in his fourth State of the Nation Address (SONA) in July, when he ordered the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) to pursue those behind stalled or anomalous projects.

Since 2022, about P544 billion in public funds have been allocated for flood control nationwide, with about P100 billion cornered by the top 15 contractors named by Mr. Marcos. — Adrian H. Halili