The formula for allocables — or reservations for the pet projects of legislators in the past three years’ budgets — that the late former Department of Public Works and Highways undersecretary Maria Catalina Cabral came up with bore the initials BBM, which is identified with President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.

BBM, in the context of the Cabral formula, stood for the “Baseline Balanced Managed” parametric formula that determined the allocation of infrastructure funds or “allocables” across congressional districts to ensure the equitable distribution of more than P1.2 trillion.

Allocables are a portion of DPWH infrastructure allocations that are pre-assigned to legislators’ pet projects and given equal priority to regular budget items.

Batangas Rep. Leandro Leviste said during a House of Representatives hearing that Cabral explained the procedure for what she called the BBM formula.

“It was an explanation, more than an equation, of how small districts obtained big budgets compared to larger districts. There was not really a strict formula for the budgets, but they actually created this system of allocables to distinguish from the non-allocables,” according to Leviste.

Non-allocable projects — effectively pork controlled by the DPWH central office — were where much of the abuse occurred.

Cabral, who died after she fell down a ravine along Kennon Road in Tuba, Benguet, on Thursday night, was believed to be the architect of the legislative insertions in the budget to generate pork barrel funds.

List entrusted to Leviste

Leviste said Cabral had furnished him with a list of recipients of the allocables on 4 September. It appeared that the list was entrusted to the lawmaker, as neither the Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) nor the Ombudsman had a copy.

Representatives of the ICI came to Leviste’s office at the Batasang Pambansa on 19 November, and the Ombudsman field investigation team also visited on 26 November.

“They said it was the first time they saw this list because, as I think I mentioned before, the ICI’s team visited the DPWH central office in early September and said that her office was cordoned off and they were not given any of the internal files from her computers,” according to Leviste. 

When they eventually went to Cabral’s office after the ICI was formed in late September, “the computers that had these files were no longer there.” 

“This is why it is of great national interest that the ICI secure all the Cabral files, along with information on the project proponents. This will allow the ICI and the Ombudsman to build cases not only in connection with ghost projects, but also against those who inserted and sold the projects,” Leviste said.

According to Leviste, the allocables list included the proponents in the DPWH budget. He said he was reviewing the files, focusing on Construction Workers Solidarity Partylist Rep. Edwin Gardiola, whom he branded as one of the biggest congressman-contractors.

“Gardiola ranks just behind Zaldy Co among the largest beneficiaries of DPWH projects. What is alarming is that he is a partylist representative with no geographic district, yet projects linked to him span multiple provinces. This is how one becomes the largest contractor in Congress, by operating nationwide,” Leviste said.

Pork not via the usual process

Gardiola, who owns Newington Builders Inc., Lourel Development Corp., and S-Ang General Construction and Trading Inc., was one of eight House members the ICI recommended be charged for criminal and administrative liabilities.

“Gardiola was the subject of our general discussion, but of course, in the entire budget, there were many other proponents than just him,” Leviste said.

“After the elections, I repeatedly reached out to Cabral. Following her courtesy resignation, I personally went to see her on 4 September, and I am grateful that these records were released to me,” he said. 

According to Leviste, Gardiola does not get projects through the usual process of lobbying the House Appropriations Committee. Instead, he allegedly deals directly with the DPWH central office. 

“In my own district in Batangas, four road projects appeared on this list and were eventually awarded to companies connected to Gardiola. Other projects tagged as ‘leadership projects,’ totaling more than P2 billion, appeared to refer to insertions made by senior officials, known only to Cabral and Bonoan,” Leviste noted.

Ombudsman referral 

before exec’s demise

The Department of Justice (DoJ) said the plunder case related to Cabral’s alleged anomalous flood control projects in Bulacan was to be referred to the Ombudsman before her death.

According to Prosecutor General Richard Fadullon, the case, which was scheduled for referral to the Office of the Ombudsman for evaluation, involved some DPWH officials in the province, as well as proponents who may have benefited from the projects.

Fadullon said they had one case referred to the Ombudsman for evaluation involving Cabral, but this was overtaken by events.

“If you’re asking if there is an active preliminary investigation, there’s still none since the PI was about to start in the case she was involved in. This is a plunder case and involves several proponents as well,” Fadullon said.

He added that the case was not limited to the officials of the Bulacan district engineering office but also the proponents who may have benefited from the projects.

Cabral was found “unconscious and unresponsive” some 20 to 30 meters below Kennon Road on Thursday, several hours after she asked her driver to drop her off at a section of the highway.

The Tuba Municipal Station police chief said a municipal doctor pronounced Cabral dead at the scene beside the Bued River at 12:03 a.m. on Friday.

Fadullon said that while her death extinguished her from criminal liability, the DoJ will continue to file civil forfeiture cases against Cabral to preserve the assets under her name.

Death from blunt force trauma

Meanwhile, Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla said the autopsy conducted on the body recovered from the ravine confirmed it was Cabral.

“It has been confirmed that Cabral’s remains were found at the bottom of a cliff in Tuba, Benguet, during an autopsy and DNA swab. What came out was it was really her, plus the fingerprints and the identification of the family,” he said.

He added that the findings were consistent with the follow-up investigation conducted by the police, and the cause of death showed “blunt force trauma from a high fall. 

“Number one, in the car there were no signs of a struggle; no blood stains. Number two, the autopsy was consistent with blunt force trauma from a high fall. Number three, she was really alone in that area where the driver dropped her off,” Remulla said.

Initially, Cabral’s family denied authorities permission to conduct an autopsy, saying her death an apparent case of suicide. Still, Remulla said the PNP invoked its power to perform an autopsy on the grounds of the suspicious nature of the death, therefore making the procedure mandatory.

No foul play

Remulla said there was no evidence of foul play in Cabral’s death and her vehicle showed nothing that may point to another person.

“At the post-mortem, at the autopsy, at the scene of the crime, we found no evidence of foul play. There was no struggle. No skin cells were found in her nails that could point to anyone. There was no gunshot wound. There were no ligature marks on the neck, so we found no foul play. There was no blood in the vehicle, and no signs of struggle,” he said.

While the police said there were no witnesses, Remulla said local law enforcement authorities saw Cabral at the exact location on the morning of the incident.

“The police saw her, so they backed up, but when she got off, it seemed like the driver got off two kilometers down to get gas, so he didn’t see [Cabral] anymore. Maybe he jumped out of there. That’s what’s going on,” he said.