Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo “Ping” Lacson on Monday strongly defended the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee, rejecting criticism of its work in exposing alleged large-scale corruption in flood control projects.
“Contrary to the lies and obfuscations that naysayers are trying to spread around, your Blue Ribbon Committee has accomplished so much since the flood control scandal broke wide open in the middle of last year,” Lacson said in his opening statement.
Visibly irritated, he added:
“With all that being said, as the chairman of this committee, I say to you: Shut the f… up!”
Lacson detailed the committee’s findings on systemic corruption in the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) and related agencies, citing schemes such as bid-rigging, in-house contracting, license renting, and “ghost” projects.
He said the probe has already led to arrests, ongoing investigations, billions of pesos in frozen assets, and reforms including the livestreaming of bicameral budget deliberations.
“Not to mention stricter safeguards to ensure that no vague or undefined infrastructure projects are included in the General Appropriations Act,” he noted.
The Senate leader warned that criticism does not advance investigations.
“Your noise will not silence the truth; neither does it provide any help in our investigation. Your noise cannot convict- and won’t even indict the malefactors in this flood control mess. Only evidence does,” Lacson said.
He further argued that dismissing the committee’s work insults both its members and the public.
“Para ipangalandakan ninyo na inutil at walang silbi ang blue ribbon committee is not only insensitive to its members but an insult to our fellow Filipinos who have consistently followed our hearings and participated in the ‘Trillion-Peso March,’” he said, referring to anticorruption protests held last year.
The remarks underscored Lacson’s pushback against detractors as the Senate continues its probe into alleged irregularities in infrastructure spending.