Dismissed DPWH exec tags Estrada, Villanueva in flood control kickbacks

National

MARKED unsafe?

A remark that once drew chuckles in a Senate hearing — when Sen. Rodante Marcoleta told Jinggoy Estrada, “Safe ka na,” after a contractor denied any senator’s involvement in anomalies — now rings with irony.

Estrada, along with fellow lawmaker Joel Villanueva, is facing accusations of pocketing kickbacks from nearly P1 billion worth of flood control projects in Bulacan. Both senators have strongly denied the claims.

The allegations were made by Brice Ericson Hernandez, a dismissed assistant district engineer of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) in Bulacan’s first district.

Appearing at the House committee on infrastructure, Hernandez said the two senators received a 30 percent “SOP” from projects they allegedly endorsed. He pointed to Estrada as the proponent of P355 million in projects in Hagonoy and Malolos, while Villanueva allegedly backed P600 million in Balagtas and Bocaue.

Before speaking, Hernandez asked lawmakers to keep him under House custody instead of returning him to the Senate, saying he feared for his safety and that of his family.

Senate President Vicente Sotto III later ordered his transfer to the Philippine National Police custodial center.

Hernandez explained that his knowledge of the supposed kickbacks came from his close association with district engineer Henry Alcantara, whom he described as a powerful figure in the DPWH Bulacan office.

He recounted how Alcantara called the district a “comfort zone” because of its large funding and said he rose in rank by carrying out Alcantara’s directives. He also claimed to have handled close to P1 billion from a private supplier on Alcantara’s behalf between 2022 and 2025. Alcantara has denied Hernandez’s statements, saying he did not personally know Estrada.

Estrada rejected the testimony and said he would pursue legal action against Hernandez. He argued that anyone could link senators to items in the national budget and insisted he never allocated or endorsed the projects in question. He also dismissed supposed ties to Alcantara and denied having an aide named Beng Ramos, adding that photos linking him to the engineer were likely from casual encounters.

“I really want to ferret out the truth – that’s why I’m diligently attending these hearings. I want to know who is the real demon behind all of this,” Estrada said in a Philstar report.

Villanueva, in a privilege speech, branded the accusations a “demolition job” by a syndicate. He likened the campaign against him to earlier political initiatives that, he said, relied on scripted testimonies, and even referred to an alleged mastermind as “Dracula,” now seeking blood elsewhere.

“We’re not afraid of this kind of demolition job. I’m also prepared to get my name tainted, criticized, if this is what it takes to save our countrymen and put an end to this unli-baha,” Villanueva said in Filipino in the same report.(MyTVCebu)