Malacañang opted not to give any comment yet on Senator Panfilo "Ping" Lacson's revelation that former Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) chief Manuel Bonoan allegedly submitted wrong flood control project locations to President Marcos, saying they still need to verify the claim.

"Sa ngayon po bine-verify pa rin po kung anong mga nasabi po ni Senator Lacson, so hindi pa po tayo makakapagbigay ng detalye at kailangan po namin ma-verify lahat po ito (At present, we are still verifying the statements made by Senator Lacson, so we are not yet able to provide details and we need to verify all of this first)," Palace Press Officer and Communications Undersecretary Claire Castro said in briefing on Thursday, Jan. 15.

The Palace official further said that "it is difficult to generalize," stressing the need to be specific about which project is being referred to.

"May pagkakataon po na nadiskubre mismo si Pangulo na may ghost projects at may mga anomalyang flood control project, yun po verified na po yun. Pero kung iba pa po at very general po yung sinasabi natin ngayon, hindi ko po mako-confirm so kailangan ko pa pong ma-verify yung mga sinasabi ni Senator Lacson (There have been instances where the President himself discovered ghost projects and anomalous flood control projects, and these have already been verified. But if what is being mentioned now is different and stated in very general terms, I cannot confirm it, so I still need to verify the statements made by Senator Lacson)," she said.

Castro also said she is not privy whether Bonoan, who is currently abroad, had made a commitment or any sort of agreement with the President to make himself available for investigation in relation to the flood control anomalies.

She, however, reiterated that Marcos wants everyone to be involved in the anomalous anti-flood projects to be investigated.

"Kasunduan, walang po tayong masasabing kasunduan, pero ang gusto ng Pangulo ma-imbestigahan ang lahat ng sangkot. Kung sila man po ay sangkot, kailangan po silang imbestigahan (As for any agreement, there is none that we can speak of. What the President wants is for everyone involved to be investigated. If they are indeed involved, they must be investigated)," Castro said.

The Palace official further stressed that it would be better if Bonoan returns to the country to shed light on the allegations against him/

"But I cannot speak for former Secretary Bonoan. Hindi ko po alam kung anong mga sinabi niya at kung anong pinangako niya. At kailangan lang po siya talagang makabalik sa Pilipinas (I do not know what he said or what he promised. What is important is that he needs to return to the Philippines)," Castro said.

According to the Bureau of Immigration, Bonoan has yet to return to the country despite a return date of Dec. 17, 2025.

Castro, however, assured that although some of the personalities investigated in the multi-billion flood control mess are not in the country, they will still be pursued.

"Hindi po, mayroon pa rin po, kahit sila’y nasa ibang bansa, hahabulin pa rin sila ng batas ng Pilipinas. At kung kinakailangan silang sampahan ng kaso at kung may maipapakitang ebidensiya mananatili pong silang akusado kapag hindi po sila bumalik sa Pilipinas (No, that is not the case. Even if they are abroad, they will still be pursued by Philippine law. And if it becomes necessary to file charges against them and there is evidence to support it, they will remain accused if they do not return to the Philippines)," Castro said.