Prøve GULL - Gratis

Corruption slowly unmasked

Manila Bulletin

|

September 25, 2025

The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) on Wednesday, Sept. 24, asked the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) to freeze nearly P500 million in luxury vehicles and almost P5 billion in aircraft connected to officials and contractors allegedly involved in ghost and substandard flood control projects.

- TRIXEE ROSEL, JEFFREY DAMICOG, and ELLSON QUISMORIO

Corruption slowly unmasked

It likewise issued show-cause orders to several regional directors (RD) and district engineers (DE) for alleged lavish lifestyles, substandard projects, or failure to cooperate with investigations.

DPWH Secretary Vince Dizon said the move aims to trace ill-gotten wealth and hold accountable those implicated in the multi-billion-peso corruption scheme. He added that the agency has also submitted asset inventories to the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Independent Commission on Infrastructure (ICI) for further investigation.

The freeze covers P474,483,120 worth of motor vehicles registered to 26 individuals under investigation, including: 1. Dismissed DPWH Bulacan first district engineer Henry Alcantara 2. Dismissed DPWH Bulacan first district assistant engineer Brice Hernandez 3. Dismissed DPWH Bulacan first district assistant engineer Jaypee Mendoza 4. John Michael Ramos 5. Ernesto Galang 6. Lorenzo Alcoriza Pagtalunan 7. Norberto Santos 8. Jaime Hernandez 9. Floralyn Simbulan 10. Juanito Mendoza 11. Roberto Roque 12. Benedict Matawaran 13. Cristina Mae Del Rosario Pineda 14. Paul Jayson Fronda Duya 15. Merg Jaron Caparas Laus 16. Lemuel Ephraim San Diego Roque 17. Arjay Salvador Domasig 18. John Carlo Cayetano Rivera 19. John Benex Santos Francisco 20. Jolo Mari Villafuerte Tayao 21. Ma. Roma Angeline D. Rimando 22. Cezarah Rowena Cruz Discaya 23. Pacifico Discaya II 24. Mark Allan Villamor Arevalo 25. Sally Nicolas Santos 26. Robert Tecson Imperio.

Hernandez has already surrendered one of his luxury vehicles to the ICI as a gesture of cooperation with authorities.

Aircraft flagged

FLERE HISTORIER FRA Manila Bulletin

Manila Bulletin

Durant lifts Rockets to OT win

Kevin Durant scored 35 points and Alperen Sengun had 30 points and 12 rebounds to help the Houston Rockets rally for a 117-113 overtime victory over the Orlando Magic on Sunday night, Nov. 16.

time to read

1 min

November 18, 2025

Manila Bulletin

US potato groups push tariff removal

Two prominent industry groups representing the United States’ (US) potato industry are urging the Trump administration to negotiate the removal of tariffs imposed by the Philippines on its exports of frozen potato fries, warning that its dominance could soon be upended by China and India.

time to read

1 mins

November 18, 2025

Manila Bulletin

Blended finance seen to halve OSW costs

Belém, Brazil — A viable fusion of financing tools—ranging from concessional loans to hard-edged guarantees—is poised to slash capital costs by roughly half for offshore wind projects in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region, primarily for priority pipelines in the Philippines and Vietnam, according to the Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC).

time to read

3 mins

November 18, 2025

Manila Bulletin

Auto sales lag amid slowing demand

Vehicle sales in the first 10 months of the year continued to lag behind last year's figures, with growth weighed down by weaker demand for passenger cars (PCs) and the popularity of more affordable transportation options, such as motorcycles, amid tighter economic conditions.

time to read

1 mins

November 18, 2025

Manila Bulletin

Manila Bulletin

Japan confers highest award on Sen. Zubiri

The government of Japan has conferred the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun on Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel “Migz” Zubiri the highest award given by Japan to a foreign national.

time to read

3 mins

November 18, 2025

Manila Bulletin

Auto sales lag amid slowing demand

the automotive industry sold 384,424 vehicles, slightly outpaced by last year's 384,310 units.

time to read

1 mins

November 18, 2025

Manila Bulletin

Manila Bulletin

Car splits in half during high-speed crash in Taytay, 4 hurt

A white Honda Civic EG hatchback was split in half after its driver lost control and crashed into a lamp post and a huge gate in Taytay, Rizal, causing injuries to the driver and three bystanders early Sunday morning, Nov. 16.

time to read

1 min

November 18, 2025

Manila Bulletin

Holiday spending lifts remittances

Cash sent home by Filipinos working and living abroad rebounded to $3.12 billion in September, emerging as the second-largest monthly remittances so far this year, just trailing July’s peak, driven by a surge in inflows on the back of the holiday season kickoff.

time to read

1 mins

November 18, 2025

Manila Bulletin

The entertaining side of social media self-promotion

Lately, I noticed a shift in my usual daily routine. I used to watch a lot of movies to wind down after a long day, but not so much in recent years. Instead, I have been spending a lot of time death-scrolling on my phone, getting entertained by a lot of self-promotion posts.

time to read

3 mins

November 18, 2025

Manila Bulletin

Manila Bulletin

Horti Filipina International Plant show brings its grand finale to Davao City

Davao City, long regarded as one of the Philippines' horticultural powerhouses, will host the grand finale of the Horti Filipina International Plant Show (HFIPS), the nation's premier horticultural gathering, on Nov. 28-30, 2025 at the SMX Convention Center.

time to read

1 mins

November 18, 2025

Listen

Translate

Share

-
+

Change font size