Daily Tribune
Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo “Ping” Lacson is pushing for a bold strategy combining retribution and restitution to hold accountable those behind billions of pesos worth of anomalous infrastructure projects, particularly ghost flood control contracts.
In a radio interview on Saturday, Lacson said the government stands to recover at least P26 billion if it adopts a targeted approach that would allow convicted individuals — including contractors, officials, and politicians — to return a portion of their “loot” in exchange for reduced jail time through plea bargaining.
Using findings from an inspection conducted by a composite team of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), Philippine National Police (PNP), and the Department of Development (DepDev), Lacson revealed that 421 ghost flood control projects, worth billions, were discovered among just 8,000 of 150,000 total projects examined between 2023 and 2025.
“A simple extrapolation, using the initial finding of 421 contracted ghost flood control projects out of the 8,000 (5.26%) so far inspected by the AFP-PNP-DepDev composite team as standard, with an aggregate total amount of at least P629 billion worth of flood control contracted projects in 2023 to 2025,” Lacson explained.
“If all those responsible — contractors, politicians, and Department of Public Works and Highways officials — will return just 80 percent of their loot after a plea-bargaining agreement in exchange for shortened jail terms, the Filipino people can easily recover at least P26 billion,” he added.
Lacson clarified that plea bargaining should not be mistaken for leniency or compromise.
“The government may direct its investigation toward this formula. For instance, you cannot expect those involved to cooperate without plea bargaining. Although plea bargaining is not common in the Philippines, the lawyers of the government and those involved can pursue that,” he said.
“Imagine the hundreds of billions in taxpayers’ money that we may be able to recover out of all the other similarly corrupted infrastructure projects,” he added.
He emphasized that a dual-track approach — jail time plus financial recovery — could be more beneficial to the country, especially when pursuing massive and deeply entrenched corruption networks.
Lacson said the push aligns with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s strong anti-corruption stance, referencing the President’s now-famous line, “Mahiya naman kayo,” from the 28 July 2025 State of the Nation Address (SONA).
“The President can take the lead here. That SONA statement was the trigger. Now the ICI, the Ombudsman, DOJ, and our courts must act with political will,” Lacson said.
“But there should be no compromise because we are talking about restitution plus retribution. No one should go free just because they returned their loot. That is very unfair,” he added.
The senator also warned that the problem goes beyond flood control.
Similar schemes, he said, plague other infrastructure projects such as farm-to-market roads, school buildings, and multipurpose halls.
Lacson said a similar formula can be pursued by the agencies concerned in dealing with other anomalous infrastructure projects, including farm-to-market roads, school buildings, and multipurpose buildings.
He added that the government should also go after the insurance providers of these anomalous projects to widen the scope of recovery.
Lacson noted that public anger over these scandals remains high and that the government should harness this sentiment as a driving force for accountability.
“It is right that the public’s anger has not diminished. We continue to hear their chants to imprison the corrupt. This anger should not diminish because this is where the government should draw its inspiration,” he said.
Following his resignation as chair of the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee, Lacson said he will now concentrate on the 2026 national budget discussions.
He added that he will continue his duties as Senate President Pro Tempore and chair of the Senate Committees on Accounts and Electoral Reforms and People’s Participation.
