COA and DPWH release second fraud report linking top officials and contractors to Bulacan ghost projects

The Commission on Audit (COA) and the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) have submitted a second set of fraud audit reports to the Ombudsman, implicating several Bulacan engineers and contractors in multimillion-peso ghost projects.

DPWH Secretary Vince Dizon, together with COA Chairperson Gamaliel Cordoba, personally turned over the documents, which detailed anomalies involving Wawao Builders and the joint venture of TopNotch Catalyst Builders Inc. and One Frame Construction Inc.

Cordoba said the fraud audit was initiated through a memorandum issued on August 12 following the President's directive to pursue accountability. "This is based on the August 12 memorandum for fraud audit that we issued after the President gave his instructions to everyone to look into these projects and ensure prosecution of those accountable," he explained.

Outraged by the findings, Dizon remarked: "Nakakagalit, ngayon lang ako nakakita ng ganito. Talagang kawalang-hiyaan na ito. Umabot na sa punto na akala nila untouchable sila, na hindi sila mahuhuli, na hindi sila mananagot."

Dizon pledged that the government, through the Inter-Agency Coordinating Council on Infrastructure (ICI), will step up efforts in the coming weeks to hold those responsible accountable. For his part, Cordoba said COA is prepared to work closely with DPWH in implementing geo-tagging technology to monitor projects from start to finish.

Authorities are also developing a centralized dashboard that will integrate data from DPWH, the Philippine Contractors Accreditation Board (PCAB), and other agencies to ensure transparency and provide the public with easier access to project information.