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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider Lacson adds extortion in the list of PCAB's 'sins'

Lacson adds extortion in the list of PCAB's 'sins'

Published Aug 31, 2025 03:52 pm

At A Glance

  • According to Sen. Panfilo "Ping" Lacson, a contractor had a problem that he sought to settle with the Philippine Contractors Accreditation Board (PCAB) and was blackmailed into paying up at least a million pesos so he can have his license renewed.

From accreditation for sale to conflict of interest, and now extortion.

Senator Panfilo “Ping” Lacson on Sunday, August 31 revealed a third issue hounding the Philippine Contractors Accreditation Board (PCAB), where a contractor was threatened with non-renewal of his license if he did not pay up.

Senator Panfilo
Senator Panfilo "Ping" Lacson (Office of Senator Lacson)

According to Lacson, a contractor had a problem that he sought to settle with the PCAB and was blackmailed into paying up at least a million pesos so he can have his license renewed.

"A contractor had a problem that he sought to settle with the PCAB. It was a case of extortion because he was blackmailed into coughing up at least a million pesos. He was told his license would not be renewed if he did not pay up," Lacson said in Filipino in an interview on DZBB radio, citing information reaching him.

The senator said this case of extortion is another “horror story” subject to validation, involving a contractor that had to pay P7 million for his first-time accreditation.

Lacson said he hopes the contractor who paid the P7 million would cooperate with the ongoing investigations and tell his story.

Last week, in a privilege speech on substandard and ghost flood control projects, Lacson disclosed that the PCAB is involved in “accreditation for sale,” based on information given to him by private contractors who said the PCAB will take care of the paperwork for at least P2 million.

PCAB, then, issued a denial, but Lacson said it still has to explain how some contractors got their accreditation after paying up.

Over the weekend, the former top cop also disclosed a conflict of interest case involving at least two PCAB board members—Engineers Erni Baggao and Arthur Escalante—who sign licenses for contractors yet have their own construction firms that bag contracts for government projects.

He scored Escalante's effort to justify his position by saying that the law creating the PCAB, which was passed in the 1960s, mandates that board members be contractors.

Lacson pointed out that Sec. 9 of Republic Act 6713, the Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials, mandates that government officials “shall avoid conflicts of interest at all times” and when a conflict of interest arises, shall “resign from his position in any private business enterprise within 30 days from his assumption of office, and/or divest himself of shareholdings or interest within 60 days from such assumption.”

“When you enter government service, particularly a regulatory body and you have a conflict of interest due to your business or practice, you should divest from your business within 30 days,” Lacson said.

“If we follow Escalante's explanation, that means a lawyer who is appointed as a judge or justice can still practice law or run his law firm. That is wrong reasoning,” he stressed.

Lacson said Escalante should consult a lawyer as he may be charged for violating RA 6713 over clear conflict of interest.

Related Tags

ping lacson flood control probe Philippine Contractors Accreditation Board (PCAB)
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