Toby Tiangco rebuffs Garbin: Flooding is top issue in Navotas

Navotas Rep. Toby Tiangco FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines — Flood control projects will naturally get a huge chunk of the allocations for Navotas City as flooding is the top concern there, Navotas City Representative Toby Tiangco said after a fellow lawmaker called out alleged insertions in the 2025 budget.

Tiangco in a message to INQUIRER on Friday countered Ako Bicol party-list Rep. Alfredo Garbin’s remarks—that 65 percent to 70 percent of P529 million Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) went to flood control—by reminding the lawmaker that Navotas is actually below sea level.

“Navotas is below sea level during high tide and lies downstream of the Tullahan River. This means, water during the high tide coming from the sea and the river is higher than the land of Navotas. Therefore, flooding is really the number one issue that needs to be addressed,” Tiangco said in a mix of English and Filipino.

READ: Tiangco challenges House to reveal 2025 small committee amendments

“That’s why flood control projects are so important because flooding affects many aspects of life—safety, health, livelihood, education, and businesses of each Navoteño,” he added. “We have openly told our fellow Navotas residents that we have asked the National Government for funds for flood control projects. This is not a secret.”

Tiangco’s statements came after Garbin said that Tiangco’s call for transparency should start with his own district—saying that the P529 million worth of alleged insertions in the infrastructure control projects in Navotas were already downloaded to St. Timothy Construction Corp.—a firm owned by o contractor-couple Pacifico “Curlee” Discaya and Cezarah “Sarah” Discaya—and other companies being questioned.

READ: House tri-comm to summon Zaldy Co if linked to flood control anomalies

Garbin said the other company is Syms Construction Trading, which was banned by newly appointed Public Works Secretary Vince Dizon over “ghost” flood control projects.

The Ako Bicol lawmaker said that the DPWH even asked Tiangco to assist the companies in implementing projects.

But Tiangco said that he has not talked to DPWH to even ask who won in the bidding for projects.

READ: Dizon to order perpetual ban of Wawao Builders, Syms Construction

Furthermore, Tiangco dared Garbin, asking him if none of the top 15 companies who bagged the most flood control projects, as mentioned by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., were able to bag contracts in their areas.

“The crafting of the Program of Works and the bidding for projects is not part of our office’s role, and that is one thing I have never tried to meddle in. I don’t even ask DPWH who are the winning bidders for projects. The first time I asked the district engineer was when the Top 15 contractors list came out to check if they had projects in Navotas,” Tiangco said.

“Second was to ask if they are sure if the projects of contractors were okay, and not only these, and the DE confirmed everything is okay. And if I saw problems with the projects, I would be the first one to complain. What would I earn from that? I am not a contractor,” he added. “My question to him is, do these Top 15 contractors have no project in their area?”

Garbin’s remarks were prompted by claims from Tiangco about his Ako Bicol colleague, former appropriations committee chairperson and Ako Bicol Rep. Elizaldy Co, about supposedly making over P13 billion worth of insertions in the 2025 national budget.

According to Garbin, some of the funds that Tiangco mentioned were even not released.

“The items in the budget which were included in the General Appropriation Act, we already confirmed that these were not released—meaning not part of any anomalous DPWH projects or not subject of the investigation right now. So that’s why he (Co) was ruled out by the committee, that they cannot talk about it because that was not subject of the controversy,” Garbin claimed.

“But speaking of insertions, he has insertions over half a billion, and out of the P529 million insertion niya for 2025, 65 to 70 percent is for flood control in Navotas. And I am amazed that the two contractors who were awarded contracts in his districts were the subject of the tri-committee probe, and these two contractors were being investigated right now because of ghost projects,” he added.

Tiangco was one of the lawmakers who asked last Tuesday that Co, as head of the 19th Congress’ House committee on appropriations, be invited by the House infra-committee, which is currently conducting an investigation of anomalous flood control projects.

The Navotas solon later told reporters that he had proof that party-lists affiliated with Co received more than P4 billion worth of allocations from DPWH — P2.23 billion for Ako Bicol, P2.06 billion for Barangay Health Workers which is represented by her niece, former Rep. Natasha Co, and P13 billion under Elizaldy Co himself.

As early as August, Tiangco has been asking Co to reveal all the amendments made by the small committee for the 2025 budget, to show that the House leadership is truly serious about its push for reforms.

Currently, the House confirmed that Co is in the United States for a medical treatment.

The call for budget transparency, along with investigations of infrastructure projects, came after President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’ strong-worded condemnation of government officials and firms who allegedly earned kickbacks at the expense of people suffering from heavy floods.

Marcos said during his fourth State of the Nation Address that these officials and contractors should be ashamed of themselves.

Eventually, the President released a list of contractors, along with flood control projects that were either faulty or non-existent. /cb