Jauhn Etienne Villaruel

Pacifico and Cezarah Discaya, owners of St. Gerrard Construction Company, attend a Senate Blue Ribbon Committee hearing on the alleged ghost flood control projects at the Philippine Senate on September 8, 2025. Mark Demayo, ABS-CBN News

Article (news)

Senate Hearing on Flood Control Projects

Adrian Ayalin

ABS-CBN News

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/176032651594820250908-senate-blue-ribbon-discayas.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Pacifico and Cezarah Discaya, owners of St. Gerrard Construction Company, attend a Senate Blue Ribbon Committee hearing on the alleged ghost flood control projects at the Philippine Senate on September 8, 2025. Mark Demayo, ABS-CBN News</span></span></span></div><div><br/></div><p>MANILA — The Department of Justice said it will file appropriate complaints before the Office of the Ombudsman in relation to the flood control corruption, with or without the supposed “tell all” testimonies of protected witnesses such as the Discaya couple.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2025/9/30/discaya-couple-ready-to-tell-all-says-lawyer-1730">Discaya couple ready to tell &#x27;all&#x27;, says lawyer</a></div><p>It has been a month since contractors Curlee and Sarah Discaya and Sally Santos, as well as former Department of Public Works and Highways officials Roberto Bernardo, Henry Alcantara, Brice Hernandez and Jaypee Mendoza have been going in and out of the DOJ.</p><p>The contractors and the engineers have been declared protected witnesses but are still seeking to become full-pledged state witnesses under the Witness Protection Program of the DOJ.</p><p>DOJ Officer-in-Charge Fredderick Vida noted the public clamor to hold individuals accountable for the multi-billion peso ghost and graft-ridden flood control projects.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2025/10/8/brice-hernandez-submits-tell-all-affidavit-in-doj-meeting-lawyer-1446">Brice Hernandez submits ‘tell all’ affidavit in DOJ meeting: lawyer</a></div><p>“The timeline is already set, the people are impatient, if we don’t find something satisfactory, we will file the appropriate cases, with or without testimonies we will build the cases based on the evidence we have,” Vida said.</p><p>Vida also noted that the DOJ has a memorandum of agreement with the Office of the Ombudsman signed by former Secretary Leila De Lima and former Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales to facilitate the filing of cases against public officials.  </p><div><br/></div><div><strong>FILING IN THE COMING WEEKS</strong></div><div><br/></div><p>Vida also assured that the DOJ is in constant coordination with the Independent Commission for Infrastructure, which is also conducting a probe on the flood control mess.</p><p>“In the coming weeks we will be filing, in coordination with the ICI and the Ombudsman we will be filing the appropriate cases. At the end of the day we should follow the rule of law kasi,” Vida said.</p><p>With growing discontent from various sectors, including the Sunday protest outside Makati City villages, Vida appealed to the public to let the rule of law prevail.  </p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2025/10/13/lawmaker-others-hold-protest-outside-posh-makati-subdivision-0806">Lawmaker, others hold protest outside posh Makati subdivision</a></div><p>“Nananawagan ako sa lahat ng kababayan, hindi lang ho palamuti dapat yung phrase na rule of law, napakalaking bagay po na hayaan natin ang bawat institusyon ay gumanap at gumana kasi pag nag-shortcut po tayo, dyan tayo nagkakaproblema,” Vida said.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>NBI, PNP PROBES</strong></div><div><br/></div><p>Meantime, Prosecutor General Richard Anthony Fadullon also emphasized that National Bureau of Investigation and the Philippine National Police are also conducting their own investigations.</p><p>“Hindi naman po tayo umaasa lang doon sa mga salaysay na isinusimite sa atin,  nangangalap din po ang ating NBI, ang ating kapulisan ng ebidensya independent of the statements,” Fadullon said.</p><p>With the investigations being done by the NBI and the PNP, Fadullon also stressed that the DOJ is not limited to the testimonies of the Discayas and the other individuals aspiring to become state witnesses.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2025/10/7/jinggoy-estrada-sues-ex-dpwh-engineer-who-implicated-him-in-flood-control-scam-0959">Jinggoy files perjury raps vs ex-DPWH exec who tagged him in flood control scam</a></div><p>“Hindi po kailangang hintayin hanggang sila po ay handang magbigay ng kanilang salaysay o yung sinasabi ng kanilang abogado na they will tell all, malalaman lang po natin iyan kapag nandyan na po sa harap ang nag-iimbestiga at e-evaluate-in titingnan natin kung ito ay sapat na para sila maikunsiderang state witness,” Fadullon said.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>RELATED VIDEOS</strong></div><div><br/></div><div><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Sl1daHU6e7M?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/CTz8aDj5HNQ?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/n7mLglVpiBs?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><br/></div>

<p>The DOJ said it will file appropriate complaints before the Office of the Ombudsman with or without the supposed “tell all” testimonies of the witnesses in the flood control scandal.</p>

The DOJ said it will file appropriate complaints before the Office of the Ombudsman with or without the supposed “tell all” testimonies of the witnesses in the flood control scandal.

'People are impatient': DOJ sets ultimatum for 'tell all' of witnesses in flood control mess

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'People are impatient': DOJ sets ultimatum for 'tell all' of witnesses in flood control mess

Adrian Ayalin,

ABS-CBN News

Published Oct 13, 2025 11:43 AM PHT

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DOJ

flood control projects

protected witnesses

state witness

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