Ex-Candaba execs sue solon, DPWH for plunder

PELAYO

CITY OF SAN FERNANDO—The former mayor and vice mayor of Candaba town in Pampanga province have accused Rep. Juan Pablo Bondoc and the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) of plunder over P2-billion worth of allegedly anomalous projects in the town.

In a complaint filed in the National Bureau of Investigations (NBI) last week, former Mayor Jerry Pelayo and former Vice Mayor Daniel Gallardo said there were “several irregular, substandard construction projects in Candaba, all with the full knowledge and consent of Congressman Bondoc and former Mayor Rene Maglanque.”

Maglanque was also included in the complaint.

In their joint affidavit, Pelayo and Gallardo claimed that funds from these projects were used by the Liberal Party in the 2016 elections. They asked the NBI to secure copies of special allotment release orders, disbursement vouchers and other documents for 14 projects in the town.

The Candaba projects under question involved the Malisic River (P100 million), the Pasig channel (P216 million), the Arayat-Apalit setback levee (P400 million), the Pulong Palazan-Barit Road (P90 million), the Anyatam channel (P18 million) and the Bomba Bridge (P120 million).

Reached for comment, Bondoc said he welcomed the NBI investigation. “I trust that the projects were properly implemented by the agencies. The projects favored the people of the fourth district,” said Bondoc, a leader of the Nacionalista Party.

The fourth congressional district consists of the towns of Candaba, Sto. Tomas, San Luis, San Simon, Macabebe, Masantol, Minalin and Apalit.

Bondoc described the complaint as “politically motivated” and said it would not stop him from seeking more projects from the DPWH, the Department of Agriculture and the Department of Agrarian Reform.

Pelayo and Gallardo said they “could not simply close [our] eyes to the pathetic state of what has become of Candaba, mainly due to the indifference and lack of concern as a result of Congressman Bondoc and former Mayor Maglanque’s selfish acts of living in luxury at the expense of government funds.”

They also charged Antonio Molano, DPWH Central Luzon director, who heads the DPWH’s construction, planning and design division, its project engineers, field inspectors, and members of its bids and awards committee as well as the officers of three private contractors. —TONETTE OREJAS