Jauhn Etienne Villaruel

Sandigan Bayan. Jonathan  Cellona, ABS-CBN News

Article (news)

Kaxandra Salonga

ABS-CBN News

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/178280061931020160801-qc-government-agencies-JC-546.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Sandiganbayan. <em>Jonathan Cellona, ABS-CBN News</em></span></span></span></div><p>MANILA — A defense witness in the malversation case against former Ako Bicol Rep. Zaldy Co testified on Tuesday that he signed a certificate of inspection for the allegedly anomalous road dike project in Naujan, Oriental Mindoro without personally verifying the status of the project.</p><p>DPWH-Mimaropa Quality Assurance and Hydrology Division chief Dennis Abagon told the Sandiganbayan Sixth Division that he signed the portion marked &quot;for noted&quot; on the certificate of inspection.</p><p>When asked by prosecutors if he signed the document without verifying the project&#x27;s status, Abagon replied, &quot;yes.&quot;</p><p>Abagon said he was not required to inspect the project during the first progress billing because the inspectorate team, which includes his division, is formed only after a contractor declares the project complete.</p><p>He testified that monitoring the project during construction was the responsibility of the project engineer.</p><p>Abagon also said the statement of work accomplished, photograph logs and quantity computations were not attached to the certificate of inspection when he signed it. He said he received the statement of work accomplished separately on another day.</p><p>He added that the certificate of inspection could still be processed even without his signature because his approval did not hold weight for the first progress billing.</p><p>During cross-examination, Abagon said the steel sheet piles used in the project underwent tensile strength and chemical testing at a private laboratory after his co-accused, DPWH-Mimaropa Regional Director Gerald Pacanan, signed a waiver allowing testing outside the agency&#x27;s laboratory.</p><p>However, Abagon said the tensile test results did not indicate the actual length of the steel sheet piles because only samples were subjected to testing.</p><p>Earlier inspections by DPWH Secretary Vince Dizon and Oriental Mindoro Gov. Humerlito &quot;Bonz&quot; Dolor reported that the project’s installed steel sheet piles measured only 3 meters instead of the required 12 meters required under its Detailed Engineering Design.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>RELATED VIDEO</strong></div><div><strong><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></strong><br/></div>

<p>A defense witness in the malversation case against former Ako Bicol Rep. Zaldy Co testified on Tuesday that he signed a certificate of inspection for the allegedly anomalous road dike project in Naujan, Oriental Mindoro without personally verifying the status of the project.</p>

A defense witness in the malversation case against former Ako Bicol Rep. Zaldy Co testified on Tuesday that he signed a certificate of inspection for the allegedly anomalous road dike project in Naujan, Oriental Mindoro without personally verifying the status of the project.

Accused in Naujan flood control case admits signing without verifying project status

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Accused in Naujan flood control case admits signing without verifying project status

Kaxandra Salonga,

ABS-CBN News

Published June 30, 2026 02:24 PM PHT

Read More:

flood control

Zaldy Co

DPWH

Mimaropa

Mindoro

Naujan

road dike

flood control

corruption

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