Cut Bonoan loose

Ask a man on the street what he misses most about the previous dispensation and the likely reply would be the resolute and quick decisions by the past leadership.

The apparent indecision over an overhaul of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) beginning at the top, where Secretary Manuel Bonoan continues to cling to his post, has highlighted the contrast in the leadership styles of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and his predecessor, Rodrigo Duterte.

After exposing the 15 contractors that cornered P100 billion worth of flood control projects in the past three years, President Marcos should have terminated Bonoan as head of the graft-ridden agency.

Bonoan attempted to disassociate himself from the scandal, but his culpability stems from the same excuse he uses: that he was unaware of what was happening.

The perception of many is that he has headed a critical agency known for corrupt practices since 2022 but professes to not be in the loop. What is he doing there?

His leech-like grip on his position has become a liability to the President, whose political will is being compared to his predecessor’s.

The decision to retain Bonoan despite widespread calls for his resignation reinforces arguments about weakness and indecisiveness, particularly given that the President has allowed internal investigations to proceed in the agency without taking action against the secretary.

Duterte was, in comparison, known for his swift and decisive dismissal of erring Cabinet members, often announced publicly and based on just the slightest hint of wrongdoing.

His mantra of “one whiff of corruption, you’re out” resonated with the public.

Bonoan admitted during a Senate Blue Ribbon Committee hearing the collusion between DPWH personnel and contractors, including the awarding of what turned out to be ghost projects to unqualified firms, such as Wawao Builders, of contracts worth P9 billion.

Yet, the only action taken was to place 10 officials from Bulacan’s 1st District Engineering Office on “floating status.”

Bonoan’s infamy reached unprecedented heights when he termed the blatant swindling of the government through the flood control projects in Bulacan ‘isolated cases.”

Despite the outcry against Bonoan’s incompetence, Marcos has retained him, with Malacañang repeatedly affirming its “trust and confidence” in the secretary.

Duterte’s tenure, as a backdrop, was marked by a high turnover in his Cabinet, with over 22 changes to key posts, many of which resulted from rapid dismissals due to allegations of corruption or incompetence.

Among the notable instances where heads rolled in a snap were the firing of Interior and Local Government Secretary Ismael Sueno in April 2017.

Sueno was a close ally and campaign supporter of Duterte who was axed during a Cabinet meeting after three Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) undersecretaries accused him of corruption in a P20-million fire truck procurement deal from Austria and of shielding a drug-linked politician. Sueno denied the claims, calling them “wrong information.”

In April 2018, Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II, another close ally, resigned amid scandals.

Duterte had pressured him to quit, emphasizing the importance of accountability. Menardo Guevarra replaced him. Aguirre’s exit highlighted Duterte’s intolerance of perceived failures in high-stakes probes.

In May 2018, Tourism Secretary Wanda Tulfo-Teo resigned amid a controversy over ad placements and the use of public funds, which was perceived as a conflict of interest. Duterte announced her exit in a speech, calling it a “favor” to her amid the public backlash.

Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel Piñol was publicly berated and effectively sidelined following allegations of mismanagement in rice importation and agricultural funds. Piñol was reassigned and replaced by William Dar.

The lesson of the past is about the public perception that no one is beholden to anyone when it comes to incompetence or the theft of public funds.

Duterte had said that his actions were dictated by his mandate of a “trabajante” (laborer) paid with the people’s money.

Transaction politics has no place in the government service.