Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo “Ping” Lacson on Tuesday, December 23, rejected holiday furlough requests from government contractor Curlee Discaya and three former Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) engineers detained at the Senate, citing security risks amid expected arrest warrants linked to the flood control scandal.
Lacson, who chairs the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee, said Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III approved his recommendation to deny the requests of Discaya and former DPWH Bulacan First District engineers Henry Alcantara, Brice Hernandez, and Jaypee Mendoza.
“I recommended to the Senate President that their request for Christmas furlough be denied mainly for security reasons, owing to the repeated media statements from Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla and President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. that arrest warrants against them will be issued before Christmas,” Lacson said.
“So the risk of escape becomes greater — not to mention that it makes no sense to grant such requests for Christmas leave if indeed warrants are coming out by then,” he added.
The four remain under Senate detention after being cited in contempt for refusing to cooperate in the inquiry into alleged irregularities in flood control projects.
Under the approved arrangement, they will only be allowed to hear mass within Senate premises and receive family visits, with no off-site activities permitted.
“That’s the most that we can allow given the circumstances,” Lacson said.
Lacson also urged the Office of the Ombudsman to act swiftly on its announced timetable for filing cases, including before the Sandiganbayan, stressing the need for accountability amid continued scrutiny of the proposed 2026 national budget.
“If only to strike fear among those who still entertain the idea that they can get away with stealing our citizens’ hard-earned tax money,” Lacson said.
“Especially now that the 2026 budget measure remains under public scrutiny in spite of our efforts to cleanse the same of ‘pork’ and self-aggrandizing ‘insertions’ possibly orchestrated by some incorrigible members of Congress,” he added.