Ex-DPWH engineer says only P35 of every P100 reached flood projects

A former Department of Public Works and Highways district engineer in Bulacan who turned state witness revealed that only a small percentage of public funds allocated for flood control projects was used for actual implementation.

Testifying before the Sandiganbayan Third Division on Friday, Henry Alcantara claimed that only about P35 out of every P100 remained after all deductions from project funding were made.

Alcantara said the funds were distributed to site proponents and contractors, while he supposedly received around two percent of the total budget.

He added that the ratio applied only to flood control projects, claiming that a higher percentage of funds, around 70 percent, was utilized for other infrastructure works.

The former DPWH official served as a witness in the ongoing case against Ramon 'Bong' Revilla Jr. and various other DPWH officials over alleged irregularities in a flood control project in Pandi.

In a recent development, Sandiganbayan justices, along with members of the prosecution and defense panels, conducted an ocular inspection of the site of the alleged P92.8-million ghost project along a riverbank in Purok 5, Barangay Bunsuran.

Authorities found the project largely unfinished, with a DPWH official saying the area showed “zero accomplishment,” with only a few sheet piles laid along the supposed 128-meter structure.

Prosecutors described the findings as a positive step toward strengthening the case against Revilla and his co-accused.