Only a portion from the billions worth of public funds alleged to have been plundered through anomalous flood control projects is expected to be seized by the Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI), at least during the initial stage of its planned recovery of assets from those involved in the corruption scandal.

ICI Executive Director Brian Hosaka said Thursday, Oct. 16, that the body was eyeing the recovery of around P5 billion worth of assets from the personalities who pocketed funds from the anomalous flood control projects.

"'Yung [total amount ng] gusto natin bawiin, hindi pa natin masasabi yan sa ngayon (I cannot say yet the total amount of assets that we want to recover)," Hosaka said after the ICI formed a technical working group (TWG) composed of representatives from various government agencies tasked to handle the matter.

Hosaka said the TWG will meet regularly, or at least once a week, to update each other about its members' respective actions to expedite the recovery of the ill-gotten assets.

"What I can share with you is a rough estimate. According to AMLC,  the amount of frozen accounts would be roughly P5 billion, comprising of around 2,800 accounts that [were] shared with me earlier this morning," he added.

Hosaka has acknowledged that the initial amount of assets that could be recovered now is small, in contrast to the amount already allotted and paid by the government for the supposed flood mitigation projects.

"With what we've been hearing so far, that P5 billion is not comparable to what we've heard, so far, in a way, stolen from the coffers," he said in a press conference.

Hosaka did not name whose assets would be forfeited.

But he did say that these assets would include at least 13 luxury cars that were surrendered by and confiscated from controversial contractor couple Curlee and Sarah Discaya and Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) engineers Henry Alcantara and Brice Hernandez, among others.

These assets were already frozen by the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) and are now subject for forfeiture by the Court of Appeals (CA), revealed Hosaka.

President Marcos, in a press conference in Malacañang on Oct. 11, disclosed that around 6,021 flood control projects worth P350 billion were questionable.

This was because they did not specify the exact type of flood control structures were built, repaired, or rehabilitated.

Of the P350 billion, P100 billion was cornered by only 15 contractors, who mostly became controversial after they declared as "completed" projects that were actually non-existent projects.

Hosaka said the process of identifying which assets were acquired by illegal means involves identifying their links to individuals, contractors, or companies that have to do with the controversy.

"Of course, direct evidence will be the best," he said.

Such a process will be handled by the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG), Ombudsman and the Department of Justice (DOJ), according to him.

"Because before anything else, the freezing of assets would have to go to judicial proceedings, which is the Court of Appeals. So in that basis sila yung gagawa ng ganoon klaseng (they will make pertinent) action which I think, it is very important," he said.