ACT Teachers Party-list Rep. Antonio Tinio is calling for a House inquiry on 80 "red-flagged" flood control projects worth P4.35 billion in Davao City's 1st district.

Tinio, a deputy minority leader in the House of Representatives, detailed his "findings" about these supposedly questionable flood mitigation projects during a press conference Wednesday, Nov. 5.

"Out of 121 total contracts along Davao and Matina Rivers...[80] contracts worth [P4.35 billion] are red-flagged, warranting further investigation by the [House] and ICI (Independent Commission for Infrastructure)," he said at fhe end of his presentation.

Rep. Paolo Duterte is the congressman of the first district of Davao.

"Ang panawagan nga ng taumbayan: ang lahat ng sangkot dapat managot. Kasama rito ang mga Duterte at ang paggamit nila ng pondo ng taumbayan, in the case sa flood control and other infrastructure projects," said Tinio, who recently exchanged barbs with Rep. Duterte on the current issue of corruption in government.

(The people's call is clear: all those involved must be held accountable. This includes the Dutertes and their use of public funds, particularly in the case of flood control and other infrastructure projects.)

Tinio says he and the Makabayan bloc plans to file a resolution calling for the particular investigation in aid of legislation.

"Nananawagan din tayo sa ibang mga ahensya ng gobyerno katukad ng Ombudsman, ng COA, ng ICI, na mas malalim na suriin ang mga proyekto na nabanggit natin sa Davao City particular sa flood control from the period of actually going back to as early as 2016 hanggang sa kasalukuyan," he said.

(We also call on other government agencies such as the Ombudsman, the Commission on Audit, and the ICI to conduct a deeper investigation into the projects we mentioned in Davao City, particularly those related to flood control, covering the period from as early as 2016 up to the present.)

Rep. Duterte's father, Rodrigo Duterte, served as Philippine president from 2016 to 2022.

Tinio has identified five categories of red flags among the 80 Davao projects that's being questioned.

These are the total overlap, or the funding of two contracts for construction works on identical river sections; double funding, or the awarding of two contracts to different contractors for the exact same project location; and changed location and shortchanging, where multiple projects were implemented at locations different from what was specified in the General Appropriations Act (GAA), often with significantly reduced coverage.

Another red flag according to the militant solon is the awarding of contracts that aren't indicated in the GAA at all.

Perhaps the most prevalent red flag awarding to Tinio is the awarding of contract without details. "A staggering 62 contracts worth P3.44 billion were awarded without proper specifications (such as exact location and length) in official records, making verification and accountability difficult," he said in his presentation.

Asked if these could be considered "ghost projects", or funded but non-existent projects, Tinio said: "There's that possibility, pero hindi pa natin sinasabing ganun (but we're not saying that yet)."

"Like what I said, this warrants further investigation," he added.

At any rate, Tinio denied that he was purposely targeting the Dutertes with his "exposé" of the questionable Davao projects.

"This is about ensuring that every peso of public funds meant to protect our communities from flooding actually serves that purpose. Transparency and accountability must apply equally, whether in Bulacan, Davao, or anywhere else in our country," he said.