Clavano says 'ICI did their job well,' to pursue cases against lawmaker-contractors

Assistant to the Ombudsman Mico Clavano said on Monday that they were actively reviewing the documents submitted by the Independent Commission on Infrastructure in order to file cases against lawmakers involved in the flood control scandal.

On Friday, a total of 197 mega boxes of information was turned over to the Office of the Ombudsman from the ICI containing information on the various interviews it conducted since its creation in September 2025.

Clavano said that their office was working on digitalizing the copies of the paperwork presented in order for their lawyers to review the information and consider the referrals provided by the commission.

“There are many people saying that nothing happened with the ICI, I beg to differ because the commissioners of the ICI, they took the job from the private sector, and it’s really a big thing because they don’t have the inkling to be political, it was a sacrifice on their part to take on the role,” he said.

“I think they really did their job well,” he added.

Clavano said that the investigative body was looking to file cases on various lawmakers that were also contractors or involved in construction projects funded by the government as it was against the law.

“They really need to be charged, it’s not as heavy as malversation, it’s not non-bailable because it’s only a conflict of interest but there has to be some sort of accountability,” he said.

Clavano explained that it was against the law for a contractor to become a representative of a party-list as they were prohibited from becoming lawmakers.

He noted that the Ombudsman will pursue legal actions against various individuals, filing a case for violation of the Anti–Graft and Corrupt Practices Act of 1960.

The assistant ombudsman also said that a pending case of graft against Senator Joel Villanueva was in the “advanced stages.” As for Senator Jinggoy Estrada, he said that the case was set for resolution.