Senator Joel Villanueva on Thursday confronted former Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Bulacan 1st District Assistant Engineers Brice Hernandez and Jaypee Mendoza during the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee hearing, after Mendoza insisted on Villanueva’s alleged involvement in anomalous flood control projects.
Mendoza claimed that the controversial screenshots of messages presented earlier at the House of Representatives were given to him by former DPWH Bulacan 1st District Engineer Henry Alcantara.
“Ang sabi po ni Boss Henry, nagre-request daw po si Senator Joel ng pondo po na almost parang ang pagkakabanggit ni Boss Henry is ₱1.5 billion subalit dun sa parang pumasok sa conversation po na na-picturan is ang kaya lang i-allot sa kanya ni Sec. (Manuel) Bonoan is ₱600 million,” Mendoza alleged.
Both Villanueva and Alcantara denied the accusations.
“Was there a time na I asked or I nominated floor control programs sa inyo?” Villanueva asked.
Alcantara answered: “Wala po, your honor, eversince po.”
To prove how easily data can be manipulated, Villanueva demonstrated how the metadata of a message can be altered to change its date.
“Bukod po sa kung gaano kadaling mag-doktor ng picture, inamin niya po mismo sa KAMARA… inamin po ni Engr. Brice na wala siyang personal knowledge sa mga mensahe ito,” Villanueva said.
Hernandez, however, stood firm, insisting that projects for Villanueva were indeed included under the Unprogrammed Appropriations of the 2023 General Appropriations Act (GAA).
Blue Ribbon Chairman and Senate President Pro Tempore Ping Lacson confirmed that he had seen at least seven or eight items under the 2023 unprogrammed funds amounting to ₱600 million, but said this will be tackled further in the next hearing.