A Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) engineer in Batangas was arrested after being caught in an entrapment operation. He was caught offering ₱3.1 million bribe to Batangas 1st District Rep. Leandro Leviste to stop the investigation into flood control projects with anomalies.
DPWH Batangas 1st District Engineer Abelardo Calalo is currently in police custody. According to authorities, the amount seized could be higher as the ₱3.1 million may be just the first payment. The DPWH said Calalo will be removed from his post and placed under preventive suspension while the case continues.
Leviste announced that he will file a case against Calalo at the Office of the Provincial Prosecutor. He stressed that corruption in the DPWH should not be tolerated and that projects should be made to be durable and of high quality. During his inspections, he discovered that many flood control structures in Batangas collapsed even before they were built.
According to Leviste, nearly ₱1 billion has been spent on flood control projects in his district, but many of them are vulnerable to typhoons. Because of this, he proposed transferring the ₱275 billion budget for flood control to the Department of Education to be used for the construction of new classrooms.
Calalo could be charged with corruption of public officials and violation of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said that investigations into projects with anomalies would be intensified and urged citizens to report botched DPWH projects.
