Ombudsman to file charges over P96.5-M Davao Occidental flood control 'ghost project'

The Office of the Ombudsman on Friday announced that the alleged P96.5-million Davao Occidental flood control infrastructure scandal has advanced to the case-filing stage before the Regional Trial Court (RTC) of Digos City.

“After a thorough investigation, reviewing voluminous documents, conducting field verification, and evaluating sworn statements from community witnesses, the Office of the Ombudsman has found probable cause to file criminal charges in connection with an alleged P96.5-million ghost infrastructure project in Davao Occidental,” an Ombudsman official said.

A second major case involved construction firm St. Timothy Construction, its representative Sarah Discaya, and another private individual identified as Roma Rimando, along with eight officials of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) in Davao Occidental.

The respondents face charges of malversation of public funds and graft, similar to the Oriental Mindoro case involving Sunwest Construction, where the Sandiganbayan recently arraigned nine DPWH officials allegedly implicated in the anomaly.

As in the Oriental Mindoro case, the involved DPWH officials were placed under preventive suspension for six months. Those named include District Engineer Rodrigo Larete, Assistant District Engineer Michael Awa, and several section chiefs, a project engineer, and inspectors from the DPWH Davao Occidental District Engineering Office.

For the Davao Occidental project, the case revolves around a supposed flood control construction in Barangay Calman, Jose Abad Santos, Davao Occidental. The project was awarded on 22 January 2022, but based on official inspections and witness accounts, it was never implemented.

“This was confirmed during an on-ground inspection conducted by the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group of the Philippine National Police, which found that works were only started after the flood control issue had gone public. Prior to that time, there was no trace of construction in the area,” Assistant Ombudsman Mico Clavano said.

According to Clavano, the charge of malversation was recommended to be non-bailable, meaning that once warrants of arrest are issued by the court, the respondents will be detained pending trial.

The Office of the Ombudsman also disclosed that hold departure orders against the respondents are being prepared to prevent them from leaving the country and evading arrest.

“The hold departure order requests are being prepared so that we can already implement them or formally request the courts to issue such orders. The Supreme Court has designated certain specialized trial courts for this purpose,” Clavano said.

Clavano emphasized that these cases are only the beginning of a broader accountability drive by the Ombudsman.

“As in the first case, the Office of the Ombudsman assures the Filipino people that we will pursue this matter firmly, independently, and without fear or favor. Public funds intended for community protection cannot be converted into private gain and greed. Every person who participated in this scheme will be held accountable,” he said.