Governor Daniel R. Fernando and Vice Gov. Alexis C. Castro clarify the issue on the formal complaint filed by an anonymous "Francisco Balagtas" with the Ombudsman at the Hiyas ng Bulacan Pavillon Convention Center in the City of Malolos on Friday, May 10, 2024. Also in photo are (from left) BENRO head Atty. Julius Victor C. Degala, Provincial Engineers Office department head Engineer Glenn Reyes, Provincial Legal Office department head Atty. Gerald Nelson C. Manalo, Provincial Administrator Antonette V. Constantino, and Provincial Information Officer Katrina Anne Bernardo Balingit. (Freddie Velez)

A political demolition campaign.

This was how Bulacan Governor Daniel R. Fernando described the graft and corruption case filed by an anonymous "Francisco Balagtas" with the office of the Ombudsman against him and several others on the province-wide river dredging and restoration program of the provincial government.

He called the news that came out in two media entities and which was spread in social media as twisted misinformation, deceptive, fake news, and clearly a part of the demolition job against him during a press briefing at the Hiyas ng Bulacan Pavillon Convention Center in the City of Malolos.

"Hindi dapat hinahadlangan ang isang kapakipakinabang na proyekto na sa loob ng halos 50 taon ay naglalayong mahango sa hirap at pasakit ng pagbaha sa lalawigan na matagal ng tinitiis ng ating mga kababayan,"(They should not hinder a worthwhile project that for almost 50 years aims to put an end to the perennial problem of flooding in the province that our countrymen have endured for a long time), " Fernando said.
 

The three-page complaint filed by Balagtas dated May 1, which was mailed to the Office of the Ombudsman on May 3, claimed that the province-wide river dredging and restoration program has no public procurement process or did not go through the bidding and that Torejas Construction Supply Corporation (TCSC) was not selected but was anointed by Bulacan government officials.

The Bulacan governor said  the complainant clearly does not know what he was talking about since the project is not covered by Republic Act 9184. It is clearly stated in DENR Administrative Order (DAO) No. 2020-07, Section 5, that no funding from the government shall be made for the conduct of dredging activities by the private sector, therefore, no bidding because the Bulacan government has not allotted any fund for it.

Holders of dredging clearance shall provide the financing, technology, management, and personnel necessary to implement dredging activities within the exclusive river dredging zone. "These allegations are false, twisted half-truths, and certainly misinformation and a political demolition campaign," the Bulacan governor said. 
 

Fernando recently announced the permanent solution to the decades-old flooding problem during a briefing on the implementation of the province-wide river restoration program held at EDSA Shangri-la Manila last April 29 and which was attended by local officials of Bulacan. 

He said the project was finalized at the height of the pandemic in 2020. "We responded to DENR Administrative Order No. 2020-07 and approved Executive Order No. 07, Series of 2021 in Bulacan. "We formed an Inter-Agency Committee that will handle the priority dredging zones in the province," Fernando said. 
 

He said this is a project of the national government which they support, after nearly three years of careful research and planning.  

The provincial government partnered with TCSC, the only firm that was granted a dredging clearance by the Department of Public Works and Highways and Environmental Compliance Certificate from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources-Environmental Management Bureau, to dredge the Bulacan offshore delta and other priority rivers of Angat, Pamarawan, Malolos, Hagonoy and Guiguinto.
 

He said the environmental or Green Dredging will be led by engineers, environmental experts, and geologists who are experts in caring for natural resources, mountains, rivers, and the safety of the citizenry. 
 

The dredging program, Fernando said, will open many doors for Bulakenyos to develop a wetland ecosystem, mega dike and floodgates, coastal defense expressway, solar and wind power farming, and waste-to-energy facilities.