(UPDATE) THE Senate is scheduled to unseal on Monday several boxes of documents and a computer retrieved by former Bulacan public works official Brice Hernandez that could substantiate his allegations against lawmakers linked to anomalies in flood control projects, Sen. Panfilo Lacson said on Sunday.
Hernandez, a former assistant district engineer in Bulacan, was temporarily allowed by Senate President Vicente Sotto III to leave the Senate premises on Saturday to collect the files from his residence.
He returned later that day with the sealed boxes and a computer, which are now in the custody of the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee, which Lacson heads.
“We need to preserve the chain of custody so that when these documents, which may contain serious evidence, reach the courts, everything will be clear,” Lacson said in a radio interview.
The blue ribbon panel plans to examine the materials in upcoming hearings, including the one on Sept. 23, where new developments are expected to emerge.
Hernandez earlier implicated Sens. Jinggoy Estrada and Joel Villanueva, as well as former Caloocan 2nd District Rep. Mitch Cajayon-Uy, in the flood control anomalies, claiming that contractors were pressured to give kickbacks and follow “standard operating procedures” favorable to lawmakers.
“If the evidence proves credible, it will be presented in hearings and transmitted to the Independent Commission for Infrastructure and, ultimately, to the Ombudsman,” Lacson said.
He said that while budget insertions linked to certain projects have been verified, there is no proof that the implicated lawmakers personally benefited.
“Without hard proof, the accusations remain unsubstantiated,” the senator said.
Hernandez has admitted to participating in corrupt schemes, including receiving luxury vehicles, some of which he has begun surrendering.
His credibility, Lacson emphasized, hinges on whether the documents can back up his claims.
“Right now, what we have are allegations. These materials may either substantiate or refute those claims,” he said.
Amid the ongoing inquiry, Lacson also called for a ban on lawmakers inserting infrastructure projects into the national budget, a practice he said has been at the heart of massive corruption in the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).
“Both houses of Congress must agree not to make insertions for infrastructure projects. Institutional amendments are allowed, but other insertions must be removed,” he said.
Lacson warned that the scale of corruption stemmed from lawmakers’ meddling in project appropriations, which enables officials to siphon public funds.
“If we analyze the situation, Congress starts the corruption because of numerous insertions involving hundreds of billions of pesos,” he said.
Without such insertions, there would be no opportunity for DPWH officials to misuse taxpayer money, Lacson said.
He clarified that lawmakers should focus on institutional amendments that restore or augment budgets for vital agencies, citing the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) as an example.
“The AMLC plays a vital role, such as freezing accounts and monitoring covered persons. If they lack funds for facilities and digital systems, their budget must be augmented,” he said.
Lacson also called on the Department of Budget and Management to exercise caution when recommending the use of unprogrammed funds, noting that while some, like Senate Finance Committee Chairman Sherwin Gatchalian, consider the allocations as a form of pork barrel, removing them entirely could affect foreign-assisted or big-ticket projects that require augmentation.
During last Thursday’s blue ribbon hearing, Lacson highlighted that P600 million supposedly allocated for flood control projects in Bulacan was found under the 2023 General Appropriations Act’s Unprogrammed Fund.
These projects had previously implicated Hernandez in controversy tied to Senator Villanueva, who has denied any wrongdoing.
“The cloud of doubt hanging over certain officials must either be cleared or backed by evidence strong enough to move the case forward,” Lacson said.
