Lacson: More ‘damning evidence’ in Taguig projects

Senator Panfilo “Ping” Lacson on Friday hinted at uncovering more “damning evidence” in his investigation into alleged anomalous infrastructure projects in Taguig City, declaring that the “list lengthens” and the “case strengthens.” Lacson had begun his inquiry into infrastructure projects in Taguig, the bailiwick of Senate Minority Leader Alan Peter Cayetano, amid an escalating feud between the two senators. Cayetano, whose wife Lani is Taguig Mayor, has denied the existence of ghost projects in the city and challenged Lacson to produce evidence. Lacson has also been posting further findings on X (formerly Twitter) but did not provide details. His remarks came amid renewed scrutiny over the controversial cauldron-like structure built for the Philippines’ hosting of the 2019 Southeast Asian (SEA) Games, after the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) said it would revisit issues that hounded the SEA Games organizing body then headed by Cayetano. Lacson had also earlier flagged a possible “double appropriation” involving two P100-million allocations that appeared to cover the same slope protection project in Taguig City. “One of the two must be ghost,” he said in an earlier post. Lacson said his team had found three additional P100-million slope protection projects under the 2025 General Appropriations Act, raising the total value of the Taguig projects being scrutinized from P2.085 billion to P2.385 billion. He said his team had documented at least two case studies involving suspected ghost projects in Taguig. The Inquirer has sought Cayetano’s reaction but he has yet to respond as of press time. This series of allegations highlights the importance of transparency and accountability in the Philippines' infrastructure development. Strict oversight and audits are crucial, especially for the allocation of vast sums of public funds. In the context of Japan-Philippines relations, Japan also supports infrastructure development in the Philippines, and such domestic allegations of corruption could affect bilateral trust.