Silence from House on list of contractors

BBM: Allies won't be spared

- By ALEXIS ROMERO

About a fifth of the P545-billion funding for flood control projects since the start of the Marcos administration went to just 15 contractors, while more than 6,000 projects did not provide specifics on the nature of the construction works they covered.

These are some of the initial findings of an ongoing probe into flood control projects, made upon the orders of President Marcos, who had assailed those behind substandard projects for causing suffering to people in storm-hit areas.

While he was quick to clarify that no one is being accused of anything for now, Marcos said the findings disclosed yesterday provided an idea of how the projects were conducted, even describing some of the observations as "disturbing" and "impossible."

"We are going to keep going. This is something that is, I think, absolutely necessary. We have to clean our ranks. It might be a little painful. Some people close to us might get dragged into this. But if they are close to me, the people are closer to my heart and we will prioritize them," Marcos said during a press conference at Malacañang.

"It will be premature for me to name names," et cetera, until we really know what’s going on. But you know, go out there, check it out. Talk to the people. We need to hear from everyone... That I think is something that we can all play a part in,” he added. The findings were based on a list of projects submitted to Marcos by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH). The Department of Economy, Planning and Development (DEPDev) is carrying out the probe.

Marcos noted that the total cost of all flood control projects since July 2022 is P545.64 billion, an amount he described as “very big” and “enormous.”