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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider No order from Marcos to redo flood control probe—Palace

No order from Marcos to redo flood control probe—Palace

Published Jan 20, 2026 02:58 pm
Palace Press Officer and Communications Undersecretary Claire Castro (Betheena Unite)
Palace Press Officer and Communications Undersecretary Claire Castro (Betheena Unite)
There is no directive from President Marcos to "redo" the investigation on the massive flood control anomalies after some irregularities in location of some projects were found.
Palace Press Officer and Communications Undersecretary Claire Castro said this in a press briefing on Tuesday, Jan. 20.
"Wala pong ganiyan, kailangan lang po talaga maitama. Kung ano po ang nangyaring pag-iimbestiga ngayon sabi naman po ng DPWH bago sila magsampa tinitingnan po nila nang maigi (There is no such thing; it just really needs to be corrected. As for what happened in the investigation, the DPWH said that before filing a case, they carefully examine it)," Castro said.
"Kung may pagkakamali hindi naman po agad nila ito isinasampa at ang isinasampa po naman nila ayon na rin po kahapon ay iyong may tamang data at facts (If there is a mistake, they do not immediately file it, and what they do file are those supported by proper data and facts)," Castro added.
The irregularities found in the location of the projects, Castro further said, are already within the jurisdiction of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).
"It is within the jurisdiction of the DPWH. So, it’s up to Sec. Vince (Dizon) to make amendments, to correct everything so that the culprits will be held liable," Castro said.
On Monday, the Department of Justice (DOJ) identified and confirmed that 14 flood control projects were "ghost."
This, Castro said, does not mean there are only 14 non-existent projects.
"Sa ating pagkakaalam iyong sinasabi nila na 14 ghost projects na confirmed ay initial pa lang po siya. So, iyon pa lang po ang nakikita nila pero hindi ibig sabihin na 14 lamang iyong ghost projects. Patuloy pa rin po iyong pag-iimbestiga dito (As far as we know, what they are referring to as the 14 confirmed ghost projects is still only initial. That is what they have identified so far, but it does not mean that there are only 14 ghost projects. The investigation is still ongoing)," Castro said.
"Nagkaroon po nang kaunting delay because kailangan po talagang i-confirm kung ano po iyong mga detalye dahil wala naman din pong hustisya na makukuha kung halimbawa nagkamali ang pag-iimbestiga dahil sa maling information na naibigay (There was a slight delay because the details really needed to be confirmed, since no justice would be served if the investigation were to make mistakes due to incorrect information being provided)," Castro added.

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