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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider 'Shoot sa kaldero!': Lacson says more 'damning' evidence, witnesses emerge in Taguig ghost infra probe

'Shoot sa kaldero!': Lacson says more 'damning' evidence, witnesses emerge in Taguig ghost infra probe

Published Jul 24, 2026 01:15 pm
Senator Panfilo "Ping" Lacson on Friday said investigators have uncovered more evidence and identified additional alleged bagmen in the ongoing probe into suspected ghost infrastructure projects in Taguig City, saying the case is growing stronger as the investigation progresses.
Senators Panfilo Lacson and Alan Peter Cayetano (Senate PRIB photo)
Senators Panfilo Lacson and Alan Peter Cayetano (Senate PRIB photo)
In a post on X, Lacson described the latest developments in the investigation, which he has been publicly updating following his allegations involving projects in the political bailiwick of Senator Alan Peter Cayetano.
"TAGUIG GHOST INFRA PROJECTS UPDATE # 3: Ang daming damning (evidence). The plot thickens. The list lengthens. The case strengthens. Kung merong ‘shoot sa balde’, meron ding SHOOT SA KALDERO," Lacson said.
"(TAGUIG GHOST INFRA PROJECTS UPDATE # 3: There is so much damning evidence. The plot thickens. The list lengthens. The case strengthens. If there is such a thing as ‘shoot sa balde’, we now have SHOOT SA KALDERO.)"
The word "kaldero" was used as a satirical mock and political joke by critics and netizens to lampoon the P50-million 2019 SEA Games cauldron, which they likened to an overpriced household cooking pot.
In an interview over DZMM, Lacson said the investigation has led to the identification of more alleged bagmen and suggested that multiple individuals may eventually be implicated.
"Long story short, if we summarize this, this is a work in progress and the progress seems good. We have uncovered many pieces of evidence and talked to many potential witnesses. So this is not confined to one person - we think there are many others who may be implicated," he said in English and Filipino.
Lacson also disclosed that investigators found additional questionable slope protection projects worth around P100 million each, bringing the total value of the projects under scrutiny to P3.385 billion.
According to Lacson, two of the projects carried the same location and description, raising concerns that one project may have been funded twice.
"One project was funded twice. It may not be outright illegal but if payment was collected for both, one is a ghost project. If one was not implemented, where did the P100 million appropriation for it go?" he said.
He added that investigators had also identified allegedly defective projects with overlapping spans that appeared to create opportunities for kickbacks.
Lacson said he is considering bypassing a Senate inquiry and instead transmitting the evidence directly to the Office of the Ombudsman if the evidence proves sufficient to support the filing of cases.
"If we course it through the Blue Ribbon Committee, there would be a long 'discussion' and the resource persons could be harassed," he said.
The senator also maintained that while Taguig has become his immediate priority following Cayetano's criticism of him, the investigation is not limited to the city.
"We always had the records on questionable projects in Taguig City but we had to initially focus on Bulacan and Occidental Mindoro and other areas. Now that Cayetano attacked my integrity, I instructed my staff to focus on Taguig because Cayetano has been making noise while trying to appear clean while making baseless accusations against me," he said.
"I am just prioritizing Taguig, not singling it out. And I am prioritizing it after he attacked my integrity," he added.

Related Tags

ping lacson Alan Peter Cayetano ghost infra projects Taguig City
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