MANILA — Senator Erwin Tulfo criticized the common practice of reblocking fine roads, saying it leads to duplication of government infrastructure projects.

During the continuation of the 2026 budget briefing of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), Tulfo said:
“Common po ito sa mga provinces. Sasabihin, ‘kakatapos lang niyan, kaka inaugurate lang, next month bubungkalin na naman. Pagkatapos, tirahin na naman, bungkal na naman.’ The same road, Mr. Chair, the same kalsada, the same munisipyo, pero paulit-ulit binubungkal, wala naman pong problema.”

Public Works Secretary Vince Dizon said the agency has established clear guidelines and criteria for reblocking, adding that reblocking activities nationwide have been suspended since October 7.

“Titingnan po natin itong mga project na ito, kung ito ba ay talagang nasira dahil binakbak o sinira ulit na hindi naman kailangan. We will have to go deeper into that investigation. But for your information po, Senator, pinahinto na po namin as of October 7 ang lahat ng reblocking activities nationwide muna,” Dizon said.

Tulfo renewed his call for stricter auditing of infrastructure projects to prevent irregular reblocking in the future. He asked, “Have you already established the control para hindi po maulit ito, particularly with the Commission on Audit sa mga regions or district offices na mai-report?”

Dizon responded that the DPWH will implement a pre-audit of all infrastructure projects, replacing the previous practice of post-audit, as part of agency process reforms.

Senate Committee on Finance Chairperson Sen. Win Gatchalian supported Tulfo’s stance, noting that adding technical descriptions to infrastructure projects will help prevent duplication of budget line items.