The revived investigation into alleged irregularities during the Philippines’ hosting of the 2019 Southeast Asian Games (SEAG) took a significant turn yesterday after the Office of the Ombudsman ordered the case reopened, a move expected to draw Senator Alan Peter Cayetano into the probe.

National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) director Melvin Matibag identified members of the Philippine Southeast Asian Games Organizing Committee (Phisgoc) who will be issued subpoenas as part of the investigation into the multibillion-peso controversy.

Matibag said investigators are examining alleged anomalies involving about P10 billion in unliquidated funds, questioned procurement and bidding processes, and the controversial P50-million Games cauldron, which critics dubbed the “golden kaldero.”

According to Matibag, subpoenas will be issued to Phisgoc chairperson Ramon “Tats” Suzara, chief financial officer Dexter Estacio, and corporate ecretary John Lester Buenconsejo, compelling them to appear before the bureau on Friday, 24 July.

“Ad testificandum and deuces tecum po itong ipapadala natin (We will issue subpoenas ad testificandum (to compel testimony) and duces tecum (to require the production of documents or evidence),” Matibag said.

Matibag previously said the bureau was launching a probe into the alleged anomalies in the bidding and funding of projects for the 2019 SEA Games after the “bureau received new information and documents” involving the Phisgoc.

Meanwhile, he said he would also ask the Phisgoc members to explain Senator Alan Peter Cayetano’s role in the organization.

“Officially, based on the record ng SEC, ‘yung hawak nating record ngayon, ay hindi po naman lumalabas ‘yung kanyang pangalan (Officially, based on the record of the SEC, the record we are holding right now, his name does not appear),” Matibag said.

Cayetano and his sister, Senator Pia Cayetano, have slammed the investigation as a tactic meant to intimidate him as a senator-judge in the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte.

Matibag, however, said he was surprised by Cayetano’s reaction, since his name did not appear in the incorporation records.

“I only noticed one thing here that I find puzzling. When we said we would investigate this, why did Senator Alan Peter Cayetano react? His name isn’t even mentioned here,” he said.

Gather docs, Remulla orders

Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla backed up Matibag’s investigation, saying he had instructed members of his staff to gather the documents about the SEA Games hosting.

Remulla explained that they were merely going to look for any potential violations committed in the construction of the multibillion-peso sports complex in New Clark City.

“This morning, I asked my staff to get the whole file from 2021 to look into the possible violations of law. We’re opening it up again,” he said.

Amid speculation that the probe was meant to intimidate and distract public officials from their duties, particularly Cayetano, who serves as a senator-judge in the impeachment trial of Vice President Duterte, Matibag maintained that the investigations were not meant to target anyone.

The sentiment was echoed by Remulla who said his office would first review the information they have before taking the next step and thoroughly investigating the individuals involved.

“There’s a time for everything. We’ll just study the work conducted by the office previously in 2021. There won’t be double jeopardy because there was no one charged, so we’ll look into it,” he said.

Reports that opened floodgates

Issues surrounding the 2019 SEA Games were first uncovered in a series of reports published by the DAILY TRIBUNE, particularly in how Phisgoc managed the biennial event.

The complaint from the Citizens Crime Watch alleged that the project lacked sufficient bidding documents, was not liquidated, had illegal contract insertions, and the project cost rose from P8.51 billion to P11 billion.

In response, Malacañang said the probe was not meant to target anyone, stressing that people who did not commit any crime should not be afraid of the investigation.

“People that did not do anything wrong should not be intimidated…this is not an intimidation tactic against people that committed no crime,” Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said.