Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III on Saturday, Sept. 20, said that the ongoing revelations in the flood control corruption probe point to even larger anomalies that took place 2016 to 2022 under the Duterte administration.

In a radio interview over at Usapang Senado on DWIZ, Sotto explained that while the scandal was uncovered under the Marcos administration, the investigation showed that the “bigger schemes” were already entrenched from 2016 to 2022.

When asked if those embroiled in corruption allegations profited more during this time, Sotto said: "Correct."

“Ang catalyst dito yung nabuko sa Marcos administration, ang nangyari tuloy, when you look back, paglingon mo, eh mas matindi pala at doon pala nagsimula ang malalaki doon sa 2016 to 2022 (The catalyst here was what was exposed during the Marcos administration. But when you look back, it’s clear the bigger ones started from 2016 to 2022),” Sotto said.

“Ito lang ang dahilan kung bakit nabuko at nabisto (This is the only reason why it has now been discovered and exposed),” he added.

Sotto raised this following assistant engineer Brice Ericson Hernandez's turnover of one of his several luxury vehicles to the Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) "as a sign of good faith".

He said that research should be done on how much they earned since 2004, citing the contractors, Pacifico "Curlee" Discaya and Cezarah "Sarah" Discaya as examples.

"Parang yung mga Discaya eh 2004 pa pala sila, anong ang mga kinita doon mula 2004? Tapos bumukol nang husto noong 2016 hanggang 2022, pandemic na ang laki pa ng kinita (It’s like with the Discayas, they’ve been around since 2004, so what earnings did they make from back then? Then it swelled even more from 2016 to 2022, and even during the pandemic they were still making huge profits)," Sotto explained.

Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo "Ping" Lacson is leading the Senate probe on the controversy. The Blue Ribbon panel is investigating testimonies from Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) officials linking lawmakers and contractors to multimillion-peso payoffs tied to anomalous flood control projects.

Sotto admitted that political exploitation of the issue was inevitable, especially from those critical of the administration. But expressed confidence that Filipinos can see the larger picture.

He said this ahead of the "Trillion Peso March" protest scheduled on Sept. 21.

“Hindi maiiwasan na may magsasamantala lalo niyan lalo na may ayaw sa administrasyon pero siguro naman ay mahusay din naman ang kaisipan ng ating mga kababayan (It can’t be avoided that some will take advantage, especially those against the administration. But I believe our people have sound judgment)," Sotto said.

"Ngayon nga nabisto eh, kung meron man dito ngayon isa o dalawang taon pa lang yan, pero mas malala yung nakaraan pa (Now it has been exposed — if there are wrongdoings here in the past year or two, they exist, but what happened before was much worse)," he added.

Meanwhile, as a taxpayer, Lacson said that he shares the frustration and anger of fellow Filipino citizens over how their taxes were lost to corruption, including the one behind anomalous flood control projects.

He said that he continues to follow the evidence that he hopes will lead to the proverbial big fish.

"I understand our citizens' frustration and anger and I share it. I am also frustrated and angry because we pay our taxes and we see what some corrupt officials did to it," he said in Filipino in a separate interview on DWIZ radio.

"There is no other way to go but to ensure a logical conclusion, and the Senate under Senate President Vicente Sotto III through the Blue Ribbon Committee is fully committed to support and complement the mandate of the Independent Commission for Infrastructure to bring to justice all those who must be made to pay for their sins against the Filipino people," he added.

"We are aware that our citizens will not settle for district engineers like the Brice Hernandezes and Henry Alcantaras of this world," he added.

Lacson hopes the protest actions against corruption that are scheduled on Sunday will be peaceful.

"Huwag lang mag-escalate na maging magulo (I just hope the actions will not become violent)," Lacson said.