Batangas 1st District Representative Leandro Leviste on Sunday said he is seeking a meeting with Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo Lacson to ask for guidance on how to properly disclose the so-called “Cabral Files.”
Leviste said he and Lacson were initially scheduled to meet last November to discuss how to release documents allegedly provided to him by the late former undersecretary Catalina Cabral.
“I requested a meeting but it didn’t happen because that was the day the Senate burned but I wanted to ask for his direction on how we can publish the entire file last November,” Leviste said in a DZBB radio interview.
“Actually tonight I messaged him if I could visit him but I think he’s out of town,” he added.
Lacson later confirmed that Leviste had requested a meeting regarding the documents.
“True. Cong. Leviste was requesting for a meeting to seek advice on how to go about the Cabral files, etc.,” Lacson said.
The senator explained that his schedule at the time was filled with work related to the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee’s probe into the flood control controversy, as well as deliberations on the national budget.
“At that time, I was very busy with BRC matters - Bernardo, Cabral, etc., not to mention the budget etc. So hindi kami natuloy (So it didn’t push through). He reiterated and I told him we will schedule after New Year,” Lacson said.
Leviste recently released documents detailing alleged Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) budget allocations dating back to 2023, which he claimed were sourced from the agency and from Cabral, allegedly with clearance from DPWH Secretary Vince Dizon.
Malacañang, however, has described the documents as “questionable” and said they have yet to be authenticated. Leviste earlier said Palace Undersecretary Claire Castro “will make a fool out of herself” if the documents are eventually confirmed by the DPWH.
Leviste said Lacson’s experience and credibility could help lend weight to the disclosure of the files.
“It is actually good that if it came from him (Lacson) because he is the senior and a veteran; it is ideal for him to lead this disclosure because he knows this is the truth, and perhaps Usec. Claire Castro will be more inclined to believe it if it comes from him,” Leviste said.
Earlier, Lacson said documents he obtained from DPWH and from Cabral showed that at least five Cabinet members and several undersecretaries allegedly had “allocable” and “non-allocable” budget items amounting to billions of pesos in the 2025 national budget.
“At least five Cabinet secretaries and some undersecretaries had allocables and/or non-allocables, according to the documents. I was surprised at one entry that said 'ES, P8 billion.' How did one 'ES' get allocables?" Lacson said in an interview.
“For Bonoan, I saw his allocables include P5 billion, plus three more batches totaling P25.5 billion, so P30.5 billion in all. What is his right to the allocables? Also, I saw the other Cabinet secretaries getting P2 billion each. Why?" he added.
According to Lacson, the information he received was based on documents provided by Cabral’s lawyer and from the DPWH itself, which he said could be authenticated by the Department of Budget and Management or the DPWH.
“The information I got is based on documents given to me by Cabral’s lawyer and from documents I got from the DPWH. We can have these documents authenticated,” Lacson said.