Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo “Ping” Lacson on Monday, Jan. 19, lashed out at detractors of the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee, bluntly telling them to “Shut the f… up!” as he opened the panel’s eighth public hearing on the alleged multibillion-peso anomalies in flood control projects.

Lacson delivered the surprise profanity at the end of his opening statement recounting what he described as the committee’s major accomplishments since the flood control scandal “broke wide open in the middle of last year,” pushing back against what he called “lies and obfuscations” spread by naysayers questioning the relevance and effectiveness of the inquiry.

The outburst came after Lacson warned that noise from skeptics, detractors, and what he termed “hijackers” would not derail the investigation, stressing that only evidence — not public clamor — could lead to accountability. He said branding the Blue Ribbon Committee as “inutile at walang silbi (useless and worthless)” was not only unfair to its members but also insulting to Filipinos who have closely followed the hearings.

"Your noise will not silence the truth; neither does it provide any help in our investigation. Your noise cannot convict - and won’t even indict the malefactors in this flood control mess. Only evidence does," he said.

Lacson walked through the milestones of the Senate’s investigation, saying the committee was already finalizing a partial report that would be circulated to senators’ offices as early as next week.

He recalled that the probe initially zeroed in on the Bulacan 1st District Engineering Office, which he described as the epicenter of what he called the biggest corruption saga in recent history. According to Lacson, the committee heard sworn testimonies from former Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) officials, including District Engineer Henry Alcantara and Assistant District Engineer Brice Hernandez, as well as Jaypee Mendoza and other individuals dubbed the “BGC boys.”

Their testimonies, Lacson said, laid bare how billions of pesos intended for flood control projects were allegedly siphoned off and splurged in casinos, not through extortion from businesses but via an “elaborate conspiracy” to divert national budget funds meant to protect lives and property in flood-prone areas.

He also cited the testimony of former DPWH Undersecretary Roberto Bernardo and said the committee, through what he described as skillful research and questioning, managed to follow both money and paper trails.

This effort, Lacson said, exposed practices such as “in-house contracting,” “bid rigging,” “padded contract costs,” and “license renting,” which he said resulted in substandard infrastructure and even ghost flood control projects.

As the hearings progressed, Lacson said the Bulacan case turned out to be a “gateway” that revealed a much broader and more institutionalized scheme within the bureaucracy. He said the committee became a platform for “shocking and scathing revelations” from key figures involved in the alleged scam, adding that the manner in which the hearings were conducted encouraged some witnesses to come forward while leaving others hesitant.

“We always go where the evidence leads us,” Lacson stressed, adding that the committee neither targets specific individuals nor intends to protect anyone.

According to Lacson, the inquiry uncovered systemic misuse of public funds involving high-ranking officials across branches of government, including the executive, legislative, and even the Commission on Audit.

He said several individuals are now facing cases before the Sandiganbayan and regular courts, while others remain under preliminary investigation by the Office of the Ombudsman and the Department of Justice. These include contractors and senior officials from various branches of government.

Lacson disclosed that, as of the latest count, at least P21.7 billion worth of bank accounts and other assets have been frozen by order of the Court of Appeals. He added that some individuals have entered the DOJ’s Witness Protection Program, signing memoranda of agreement that include commitments to restitute agreed amounts in connection with cases for plunder, malversation through falsification, violations of anti-graft laws, and other offenses.

He further detailed how the alleged scheme operated through a network of actors, including colluding contractors who rigged bids, DPWH coordinators who allegedly managed project allocations and kickbacks, and intermediaries or bagmen who received illicit funds purportedly on behalf of their principals.

The hearings, Lacson said, also exposed conflicts of interest within the Philippine Contractors Accreditation Board, the resurfacing of blacklisted firms under new names, widespread license renting, and the awarding of billion-peso contracts to severely undercapitalized companies.

Lacson also credited the probe with paving the way for transparency reforms in the national budget process, citing livestreamed and open bicameral conference committee proceedings and safeguards against vague infrastructure insertions in the General Appropriations Act (GAA).