DPWH Bulacan officials plead not guilty in Co graft case

Officials from the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Bulacan 1st District Engineering Office entered not guilty pleas for their case of graft at the Sandiganbayan Fifth Division concerning a P77 million flood control project in Balagtas, Bulacan.

The pending case before the anti-graft court also involved former congressman Zaldy Co, one of the prevalent figures in the multibillion kickback scheme involving infrastructure projects under the DPWH.

Five individuals implicated in the recently filed charges were involved in the graft and malversation cases involving former senator Ramon “Bong” Revilla, namely Brice Hernandez, Jaypee Mendoza, Arjay Domasig, Juanito Mendoza, and Christina Mae Pineda.

Aside from them, officials that were previously identified by the Commission on Audit (COA) as personalities that may be held liable for anomalies in projects carried out under the Bulacan 1st District Engineering Office.

State auditors disclosed in a statement released last February that it had recommended for the Office of the Ombudsman to probe four separate flood control projects in Bulacan wherein a total of P275 million were utilized.

Investigations under the auditing agency had reportedly found “recurring indicators of systemic misuse of public funds,” leading to it conducting a broader probe into other projects within the province.

As for the case involving Co and the seven DPWH officials, the Fifth Division took notice of the fact that Domasig, Morales, Simbulan, and Pineda remained employed in the Public Works agency but were currently in “floating” status.

The court ordered the respective camps of the officials to submit a written explanation within a period of ten days on why a preventive suspension should not be issued to their clients for their involvement in the case.

It is worth noting that the court likewise noted that Hernandez, Jaypee Mendoza, and Juanito Mendoza have all been dismissed from their posts.

Aside from a case of graft, the Ombudsman had also filed a separate case of malversation against Co and his co-accused at the Sandiganbayan related to the same infrastructure project.

While the DPWH officials are detained at the New Quezon City Jail - Male Dormitory, Co along with his staff members John Paul Estrada and Mark Tecsay who are also implicated in the case remain at-large.