By all indications, syndicated massive corruption in the contracting of goods and services and overpricing appears blatantly the norm among the DPWH, legislators and LGU chiefs.

Mayor Benjie Magalong, in his speeches and media interviews, makes a factual presentation of how much taxpayer money former and current officials of the public works department are raking in every day.

Remember typhoon “Kristine” in October 2023? Some 200 Filipinos, courtesy of the crooks, met their premature and tragic deaths when floodwaters inundated parts of Camarines Sur and other Bicol provinces.

Over P500 billion in flood control funds had been released by the budget agency but nowhere was the flood control system in place. That is how it is in this country where most officials are thieves in expensive blazers. If it wasn’t pocketed, tell us, readers, how the billions evaporated. Supposedly, it was part of what the government said were over 5,500 flood control projects planned and implemented by the DPWH.

I believe the huge appropriations were inserted by your “representathieves” in the General Appropriations Act of 2024, since, as you know, these well-dressed thieves are used to making “palusot” or cheating.

Mindanao Representative Isidro Ungab found out that P241 billion was inserted in the blank spaces of the proposed, now approved, 2025 national budget. He proceeded to file a complaint at the Ombudsman. A petition was also filed before the Supreme Court by several lawyers from the Duterte camp.

In our previous piece, we cited the overpricing of goods and services where DPWH paid P127,320 per meter for the yellow barriers we see along the curves (even the straight portions) of highways. Their true cost is only about P20,000 per meter. Where else did the overprice of P107,320 go but to the sponsoring legislators, DPWH officials, and LGU chiefs.

Erosion control nets or rock nets are common along the highways from Batanes to Jolo. They’re a good safety measure to prevent falling rocks and debris from landing on motorists and passersby. The DPWH spent a scandalous P18,000 per square meter of netting where the cost is less than P4,000 per sqm. To add to the thievery, the contractors are usually the congressmen and mayors themselves. Assuming the materials, including the padded labor, cost is P8,000 per sqm, the corrupt officials skimmed off P10,000 per sqm. Considering the volume of the netting, our readers can get an idea of how much taxpayer money went to these corrupt officials.

Mayor Magalong also revealed the corruption involving cat’s eyes, those reflective lane markers on highways from Luzon to Mindanao. They cost P404 per meter on Lazada. However, they cost the government P11,270, DPWH price. Being a former contractor myself, I should know what they really cost.

Where did the difference of P10,866 per meter go? If we consider the distance of 552 kilometers (5,520,000 meters) from Muntinlupa City in Metro Manila to Matnog in Sorsogon, for just one lane of cat’s eyes installed, the amount of overprice was no less than P7 billion. That’s a hell of an amount lost for our roads and infra projects.

Can’t the administration do something? Of course, we pray much.

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