The “ghost projects” controversy at the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) is far from over, although circumstances may point to it fading away. Thankfully, DPWH Secretary Vince Dizon is determined to go after the crooks, no matter how big or small.

Secretary Dizon’s latest announcement that the DPWH will soon enter into a memorandum of agreement (MoA) with the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC), the Philippine Competition Commission (PCC), and the Insurance Commission (IC) separately is a much-needed sign that this government intends to dig deeper, not sweep the issue under the rug.

However, this MoA must be in accordance with the law and jurisprudence so that it may not be challenged in the courts. For instance, the inclusion of the Insurance Commission must be reviewed carefully since insurance companies are also victims in the fraudulent schemes by conspiring government officials and DPWH personnel, having relied on forged or falsified documents.

With how things have developed, the Independent Commission on Infrastructure (ICI) should be spearheading the investigations, despite the private nature of its proceedings. The House of Representatives has inhibited itself, while the Senate — with the once fiery Blue Ribbon Committee — has lost momentum amid changes in its leadership. What started as a promising exercise in accountability may have been reduced to a crawl.

Compounding this slowdown is the appointment of Gilbert Remulla as Ombudsman. His exit from the Department of Justice (DoJ) may have shifted the balance of priorities within the government’s legal machinery. The DoJ, once poised to file charges and identify key state witnesses, may have also slowed down as it now awaits the appointment of a new head. In any case, the current officer in charge, Undersecretary Atty. Eric Vida, is most capable of the job at hand.

And while all these bureaucratic shifts play out, Zaldy Co, one of the most visible names in the controversy, remains comfortably outside the country. There has been no visible or forceful effort to bring him home to face investigation. The longer he stays abroad, the fainter the trail becomes.

The ICI, created precisely to address anomalies in public works projects, is uniquely positioned to take an impartial, technical, and fact-based approach. The ICI can focus on the heart of the matter: how these “ghost projects” were funded, approved, and what safeguards failed. There may only be changes needed in how transparent the proceedings should be, since there is a clamor to make the hearings public. Even with the appointment of a worthy spokesperson in Atty. Brian Keith Hosaka, former Supreme Court spokesperson, the public may deserve a deeper and more real-time view of the ongoings within the ICI.

The current scandal has the makings of another grand corruption scheme to be etched in the nation’s short memory, ala Napoles, dominating the headlines for a few months before fading into political folklore. The Filipino people must keep their eyes on this issue and demand regular public updates from the concerned agencies. The promise of “Bagong Pilipinas” means nothing if ghost projects and ghost accountability continue to haunt us.