The Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) on Thursday asked the Office of the Ombudsman to prosecute former Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Secretary Manuel Bonoan and several other officials for their alleged involvement in a ₱95-million “ghost” flood control project in Barangay Bambang, Bocaue, Bulacan.
According to the ICI, its inspection team found no structure built at the project site, even though the entire contract amount had already been released and paid to Topnotch Catalyst Builders Inc., the contractor of record.
Also named in the ICI’s 19-page interim report were former Undersecretaries Roberto Bernardo and Maria Catalina Cabral, as well as former Bulacan 1st District Engineer Henry Alcantara and Assistant Engineer Brice Hernandez. Other officials cited include Jaime Hernandez, Ernesto Galang, John Carlo Rivera, John Michael Marcos, Claudine Magdalene Magsakay, and Ericka Justine Chico.
“Findings will reveal that the involved public officials and private individuals orchestrated a scheme designed to deceive the Government and unlawfully appropriate public funds for a fictitious project, to the grave prejudice of the State and the Filipino people,” the ICI stated.
The commission recommended filing administrative charges for grave misconduct, gross dishonesty, and conduct prejudicial to the best interest of the service, or for violations of Republic Act 6713 (Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees), in connection with the project’s implementation.