TAGUIG CITY, Philippines — Senate Minority Leader Alan Peter Cayetano has accused Senator Panfilo “Ping” Lacson of allegedly intimidating contractors into signing affidavits about supposed irregularities in infrastructure projects in Taguig City by threatening them with possible plunder charges.
In a social media livestream on Saturday, October 10, Cayetano said he had received information from unnamed sources claiming that Lacson was pressuring contractors to support allegations of anomalies involving projects in the city.
“Sinong hindi matatakot sa plunder ngayon, especially sa pinagtuturo ni Senator Lacson?” Cayetano said.
He urged contractors, Public Works Secretary Vince Dizon, and other concerned agencies to remain committed to proper procedures despite the alleged pressure.
“Not everyone has the same courage or stamina or patience or guts to stand up for what is right, especially against very, very high officials, especially in this highly-charged atmosphere,” he said.
Cayetano and his sister, Senator Pia Cayetano, have previously alleged that the administration was exerting pressure in connection with the impeachment proceedings against Vice President Sara Duterte.
Lacson, however, rejected the latest accusations and challenged Cayetano to identify the individuals who were allegedly threatened so he could respond directly to the claims.
“Senator Cayetano should name the ‘individuals’ he alleged I threatened, so I can properly address this new issue point by point,” Lacson said in a social media post.
He also criticized Cayetano’s statements, saying, “Spinning tales betrays panic but like guilt, it will never go away.”
In a separate statement on Saturday, Lacson accused Cayetano of attempting to divert public attention from alleged irregularities in Taguig’s infrastructure projects and purported illegal reclamation activities. He maintained that evidence of possible corruption in the city continued to emerge.
Cayetano had earlier disclosed receiving “feelers” that certain individuals were being pressured to acknowledge irregularities in projects in Taguig.
Lacson previously dismissed Cayetano’s claims that the corruption allegations were part of a politically motivated demolition job, involved fake news, or amounted to trial by publicity. He argued that the statements appeared to reflect concern over the allegations being brought to light.
In a social media post on September 3, Lacson said:
“PATHETIC. Imagine someone ‘quacking’ on FB Live with accusations of politically motivated demolition job, fake news and trial by publicity and at the same time ‘quaking in his boots’ every time each piece of evidence of corruption in his turf unfolds before his eyes.”
Lacson and his team have submitted at least 45 case studies to the Office of the Ombudsman, accompanied by official documents that they said point to systemic irregularities in flood control projects in Taguig. The submission prompted the Ombudsman to launch a fact-finding investigation.
More recently, Lacson released raw video footage on social media from a joint inspection team. He said the footage showed ongoing illegal reclamation activities along the Taguig side of Laguna Lake.
The allegations involving the contractors remain disputed, with Lacson calling on Cayetano to provide specific names and details to support his claims.