Batangas 1st District Representative Leandro Leviste has made public a district-by-district list of Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) projects, a document he said was provided to him by the late Public Works Undersecretary Catalina Cabral.
Shared on social media, the list details the “allocable” or designated DPWH budget per congressional district, which totals ₱401.3 billion.
Leviste explained that additional funds classified as “Outside Allocable,” including amendments and insertions from the House, Senate, bicameral conference committee, and the National Expenditure Program (NEP), bring the total DPWH budget under the FY 2025 General Appropriations Act to ₱1.041 trillion.
“Bukod dito, may ‘Outside Allocable’ naman na ina-allocate ng iba’t ibang mga proponents, kasama ang amendments (o insertions) sa House, Senate, Bicam, pati na rin sa NEP, kaya umabot sa ₱1.041B ang total budget sa FY 2025 GAA (General Appropriations Act),” Leviste said.
He stressed that the listed funds are strictly for infrastructure projects and not for the personal use of lawmakers.
“Para po malinaw: Ang mga budget na ito ay ginagamit ng DPWH para sa mga proyekto, at hindi po para sa proponent. At ang karamihan ng budget ay nasa labas ng ‘Allocable’ ng mga District Congressman, at may iba pang mga proponent,” he added.
Leviste said he also provided copies of the so-called Cabral list to members of the media, underscoring the importance of public awareness in government spending.
“Mabuting malaman ng publiko ang nilalaman ng DPWH budget upang maipagmalaki po natin ang ating mga proyekto,” he said.
While acknowledging that the disclosure could upset some colleagues in Congress, Leviste maintained that transparency must take precedence.
“Sana po ay hindi magalit ang aking mga kasamahan, at may iba rin naman pong sources tungkol sa DPWH budget,” he said.
In a previous post, Leviste broke down the allocations, citing ₱401.3 billion for district representatives, ₱14.5 billion for party-list lawmakers, ₱20.6 billion for senators of the 19th Congress, and ₱285 billion for other proponents.
“Paumanhin po sa buong gobyerno at alam kong maraming nagagalit sa akin dahil dito. Hindi ko po layuning personal kayong maapektuhan. Isusulong kong talakayin ito sa Kongreso pagkatapos ng Pasko,” he said.
He also denied allegations linking him to a separate partial list of supposed budget insertions circulating online.
“Kung may ibang kumakalat na partial listahan ng insertions ni yumaong USec Cabral, hindi po iyon galing sa akin. Hindi ko po ito ilalabas sa pamamagitan ng iba, gagawin ko po ito nang direkta,” Leviste said.