By CESAR JOLITO III
A Bacolod City lawmaker has called on the Department of Justice (DOJ) to actively seek out and protect whistleblowers from the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) who can help expose what he described as a “massive corrupt conspiracy” involving public funds for flood control projects.
Bacolod Lone District Representative Alfredo Abelardo Benitez said the DOJ should not merely wait for potential witnesses to surface but must proactively place them under the government’s whistleblower protection program.
“The fight to bring to justice those who endanger the lives of our people will be long and hard. But it is something we cannot set aside if we want infrastructure that does not take shortcuts and does not put lives at risk,” Benitez said in a statement.
The lawmaker pointed out that billions of pesos have been allocated for flood-mitigation programs nationwide, yet many communities continue to endure heavy flooding whenever rains hit.
This, he said, raises questions on the integrity of the projects and the accountability of those implementing them.
“Now is the opportunity for insiders to speak the truth,” he added, emphasizing that the government has the responsibility to provide both a platform and adequate protection for whistleblowers who can reveal the extent of corruption.
Benitez said ensuring transparency in infrastructure projects is crucial to rebuilding public trust, curbing systemic corruption, and protecting lives and property from substandard public works.
Earlier, Benitez said he would organize a flood control summit in Bacolod to tackle solutions that would address the recurring floods in the city.
He recently disclosed that President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. has committed to allocating funds for the installation of floodgates and pumping stations at various strategic points in the city, forming part of Bacolod’s flood control initiative.
Both local leaders emphasized the urgency of the situation and highlighted the critical need for decisive and coordinated action to address the city’s flooding problem.
In his fourth State of the Nation Address (SONA), Marcos emphasized that no official or entity involved in the corruption of public funds through such flood control projects will be exempt from charges.
While the government is seeking accountability for failed or inadequate flood control projects, Benitez noted that accountability alone is not enough and that a whole-of-community approach is crucial in finding real and doable solutions to this perennial issue.
“Flooding is a problem that affects all of us, and it will take all of us to solve it … At the end of the day, we are all part of the solution, and if we do not act, no one else will,” Benitez said in a separate statement.
He believes such a move will not only uphold the credibility of the investigation but also help rebuild public confidence in government infrastructure programs. / With reports from PIA / CJ, WDJ