MANILA – Malacañang rejected Batangas 1st District Rep. Leandro Leviste’s claim that the Marcos administration had asked him to travel abroad to stop releasing evidence on alleged anomalous flood control projects.

In a statement to reporters, Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. and his administration are focused on addressing more pressing national issues.

“Abala po ang Pangulo at ang administrasyong ito sa mas mahahalagang issue ng bayan. Tutok si Pangulong Marcos Jr. para iangat ang ekonomiya ng bansa (The President and this administration are focused on more important national issues. President Marcos Jr. is concentrating on improving the country’s economy),” Castro said.

She added that the government would not waste time on what she described as a “meaningless” allegation.

“Hindi namin binibigyang halaga ang pahayag na walang kabuluhan. Sayang lang ang oras (We do not give importance to meaningless statements. They are just a waste of time),” she said.

Leviste earlier claimed to have obtained documents allegedly linking Cabinet officials and other government officials to questionable projects under the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).

In a statement on Friday, he said he sought travel authority at the request of “representatives of the administration” who allegedly wanted him to go overseas and “stop releasing evidence linking government officials to anomalous DPWH projects.”

Leviste said he remains ready to discuss the matter “as long as [he is asked or allowed].” He added that the documents allegedly came from former DPWH undersecretary Maria Catalina Cabral, who died after falling into a ravine in Tuba, Benguet, last December.