Embattled district engineer Isabelo Baleros
IN response to allegations that several officials and personnel of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) are involved in corruption and irregularities, the chief of the Las Piñas–Muntinlupa District Engineering Office (LPM DEO) has been immediately replaced.
Embattled district engineer Isabelo Baleros was reassigned to the DPWH Metro Manila 3rd District Engineering Office under the NCR Region and was substituted by Engineer Ruel Umali, as per a memorandum issued by DPWH Secretary Manuel Bonoan.
“Under and by virtue of this order, Engr. Umali is directed to perform the duties and assume the responsibilities appurtenant to the position of District Engineer,” Bonoan’s memorandum stated.
The move came just two weeks after Las Piñas lone district Rep. Mark Anthony Santos formally urged Bonoan to remove Baleros over his alleged involvement in questionable transactions, including a controversial transfer of flood control funds.
Santos alleged that Baleros requested the transfer of funds for several Las Piñas projects from his district office to the DPWH’s regional office in NCR—without consulting the Office of the Mayor, the Congressional Representative, the City Engineering Office, or the city council.
At the center of the controversy is the ₱140-million C5 Diversion Road project in Barangay Manuyo Dos—the single largest allocation from the ₱450.5-million infrastructure budget for Las Piñas this year.
Documents show that on June 9, 2025, Baleros wrote to DPWH–NCR Assistant Regional Director Montrexis Tamayo, requesting the transfer of project implementation to the regional office.
The request was quietly approved by DPWH Assistant Secretary for Regional Operations Loreta Malaluan and confirmed by Bonoan on July 15, 2025.
Bonoan has since vowed to hold accountable DPWH officers and personnel found responsible for substandard or “ghost” flood control projects, stressing that appropriate criminal charges will be filed.
Santos revealed that he had already demanded a written explanation from Baleros regarding the sudden transfer of project implementation, but the district engineer has yet to respond until he was replaced.
The neophyte lawmaker also pointed out that Baleros’ rise in the DPWH was largely influenced by political connections. Baleros was first appointed as Officer-in-Charge in October 2021 and formally installed as District Engineer in December 2022.
His office also serves as the implementing arm of the controversial 680-meter C5–Quirino Highway flyover project in Las Piñas, which has caused the realignment of the multi-billion-peso LRT-1 Cavite Extension Project.
Santos has urged Secretary Bonoan to revisit the flyover project to address obstructions and delays in the completion of the final phase of LRT-1, including the Las Piñas and Zapote stations.
