Senator Ping Lacson
(Editorial)
SENATE President Pro Tempore Panfilo “Ping” M. Lacson’s recent lament paints a grim picture of the state of government infrastructure programs in the Philippines. With corruption seemingly running rampant, from flood control projects to farm-to-market roads, it may now be easier to count the innocent than the guilty.
Lacson’s statement comes after reviewing “classified” documents from the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), which he had previously flagged for systematic anomalies in substandard and ghost flood control programs.
“Reviewing the piles of ‘classified’ DPWH documents which I shared with my staff, we all wondered aloud if the more appropriate question to ask is, ‘Who is not?’ rather than, ‘Who is guilty?'” Lacson wrote on X. “So sad to realize how widely corrupt our government infrastructure program has gone.”
The senator cited DPWH Secretary Vince Dizon’s initial findings that at least 421 out of some 8,000 flood control projects inspected were “ghost” projects. He also highlighted Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian’s revelation that over P10 billion worth of farm-to-market roads programmed under the 2023 and 2024 national budgets have been “extremely overpriced,” with some projects costing 23 times more than the standard price.
Lacson himself has exposed numerous instances of corruption within the DPWH, including officials pocketing public funds and engaging in various money-making schemes. He has turned over evidence gathered during his privilege speeches and Senate Blue Ribbon Committee hearings to the Independent Commission for Infrastructure and the Department of Justice for prosecution.
The senator has repeatedly called for the prosecution, conviction, and imprisonment of those involved, emphasizing the need for the certainty of punishment. While Lacson has resigned as chairman of the panel, he has vowed to continue his fight against corruption. The question remains: can the government truly root out this deep-seated corruption and restore public trust in its infrastructure programs?
