MANILA — Sen. Panfilo “Ping” M. Lacson expressed dismay over Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Secretary Manuel Bonoan’s insistence that corruption in flood control projects in Bulacan is an “isolated case.”

Lacson said that while he did not hear past or present DPWH officials speak ill of Bonoan, the secretary’s claim indicates weak leadership.

“In my talks with some DPWH officials, both past and present, I didn’t hear any scathingly bad words about Sec Bonoan. But for him to claim that Bulacan is an isolated case, he doesn’t strike me as a good, effective leader of his department. Sayang,” he said on X.

Lacson also debunked Bonoan’s claim regarding the Sitio Dike project in Barangay Apitong, Naujan, Oriental Mindoro. Bonoan had said in a television interview that there may have been a “miscommunication” about the project’s location.

According to Lacson, his office based its information on documents from the DPWH website and grid coordinates from the Sumbong sa Pangulo website. The DPWH listed the project — “Flood management program-construction/maintenance of flood mitigation structures and drainage systems – Construction of road dike along Mag-Asawang Tubig River, Sitio Dike, Brgy. Apitong Section, Naujan, Oriental Mindoro” — as awarded to Elite General Contractor and Development Corp. for P192,996,270 and marked “Completed” as of March 2025.

“We culled the information from the DPWH, which indicated the supposed project was ‘completed,’” Lacson said, noting that his staff confirmed with local barangay officials that no such project existed.

“Eksakto ang lokasyon na aming pinuntahan sapagkat consistent din ito sa lokasyon na nakalathala sa DPWH, at sa exact coordinates sa ‘Sumbong sa Pangulo’ website. Guni-guni o guni-guni? (My staff went to the exact location indicated in the DPWH website and the coordinates in the Sumbong sa Pangulo website. So is it a ghost project or is it a ghost project)?” he said in his privilege speech.

Lacson also rejected Bonoan’s assertion that the failed and ghost flood control projects in Bulacan’s first engineering district were an isolated case. In his Aug. 20 privilege speech, he detailed corruption in flood control projects not only in Bulacan but also in Pampanga, La Union, and Oriental Mindoro.

“When you say it is an isolated case, it sounds like a defense mechanism. It suggests you don’t intend to conduct a full-scale and comprehensive investigation. And I expected that, so I had my teams check projects in other areas,” Lacson said.