DPWH Region XII charged with malversation, graft raps over alleged ROW scam

The Office of the Ombudsman filed malversation and graft charges against six officials from Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Region XII for the payment of P491.93-million for right-of-way agreements in General Santos City.

The Ombudsman said in a briefer released on Sunday that a total of 18 informations were filed for malversation of public funds and another 18 informations for violation of Section 3(e) of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act on the officials and seven other private individuals.

It was noted that the charges arose from investigation reports that were submitted by the National Bureau of Investigation in 2018 and 2019 on the right-of-way payments intended for the construction of the Digos-Makar National Road in Lagao, General Santos City.

Prosecutors also stated that they had utilized an affidavit that was executed by Roberto Catapang in 2017, where he admitted his involvement in a syndicate that had allegedly fabricated documents for the 18 parcels of land involved in the transaction.

“The group…in collusion with respondent public officers, collected money from the government purportedly as payments for the acquisitions, by fabricating and submitting fake documents,” the affidavit reportedly disclosed.

The technical working group of the regional office had later identified that the payment was disbursed despite the falsified documents.

Investigators would also further identify that the figures charged for the land were inflated, citing the “alleged unlawful use of a 2009 appraisal value of P3,500 per square meter” that was intended for properties that were taken by the government during the 1990s.

The Ombudsman said that it had found “prima facie evidence with reasonable certainty of conviction” against former DPWH Region XII executives Regional Director Subair Saro Diron and Assistant Regional Director Laureano Suan Jr.

It was also indicated that the regional office’s former Legal Officer Ansare Mariga Busaran was ordered dismissed through a separate administrative decision.