* Says corruption scandals and floods in NCR not Davao By Ivy Tejano
DAVAO CITY – Davao City First District Rep. Paolo Duterte has pressed government officials to come clean on alleged ghost flood control projects, saying taxpayers nationwide deserve to know how they used the public funds.
In a statement over the weekend, Rep. Duterte stressed that Davaoeños, like other Filipinos, contribute to the national budget and therefore have the right to demand accountability.
“We, Davaoeños, are taxpayers, too. It’s not just Luzon or Metro Manila that pays taxes. Our money is part of the same national budget,” he said. “If there are really ghost projects, let’s show them to the public.”
Rep. Duterte underscored that the flood control funds come from people’s taxes, and urged the concerned agencies to present concrete proof of completed projects.
“If these are ghost projects, present them openly to the public. That is our money—the people’s money. Don’t twist the story and pin the blame on my family to cover up your wrongdoing,” the lawmaker added.
He questioned the delivery of public services amid corruption allegations. “Where are the actual projects? Where is the service? Or was the money pocketed instead?”
Rep. Duterte emphasized that there are areas deprived of needed infrastructures. He also broadened the issue, saying all Filipinos—Bisaya, Ilocano, Waray, Kapampangan, or Tagalog—are entitled to answers.
He lamented what he described as relentless attacks on his family, which he claimed have taken a toll on his children and dragged his father, former president Rodrigo Duterte, into international legal proceedings.
“We are not perfect, but if we make mistakes, we will face them. If the infrastructure committee is investigating, do it correctly and fairly. The people deserve the truth,” Rep. Duterte said.
He encouraged government officials to file the necessary cases against those who had truly committed violations and spare taxpayers’ money from the circus, instead of attacking his family.
Rep. Duterte further challenged officials to make budget records and project details publicly accessible. “Show all the budgets, release all the projects. Do not hide them on paper,” he said.
He urged them to show their projects in the actual districts—whether there are roads, bridges, canals, hospitals, or if they are just drawings. The lawmaker earlier showed compiled projects from his office.
Calling for evidence-based accountability, Rep. Duterte urged to end what he described as diversionary tactics. “This is no longer the time for drama, diversion, and accusations.”
Rep. Duterte asserted that the Filipino people, including us Davaoeños, will no longer accept excuses. “Let us all demand the truth, backed by evidence.”
His remarks came as questions resurfaced about flood control allocations for Davao City during his father’s administration between 2020 and 2022, which he defended.
It was noted that Davao City’s first district is geographically larger than the entire National Capital Region, and the whole city is more than three times the size of Metro Manila.
Rep. Duterte maintained that his office properly utilized the budget allocated for the projects in Davao City despite flooding in some streets during heavy rains.
The lawmaker accused the House infrastructure committee of diverting its inquiry on alleged ghost flood control projects toward the P51-billion infrastructure budget for his district during the presidency of his father.
Rep. Duterte criticized the sudden shift in questioning at the committee hearing, where Department of Public Works and Highways officials admitted paying off certain government officials.
Instead of pursuing that revelation, he said, lawmakers turned their focus to Davao’s allocations. He dared fellow legislators to release their own allocations and show completed projects in their districts.
“What kind of hearing is this?” Duterte asked in a statement. “Corruption is right before you, but you still keep looking for Duterte. Stop dragging my family to cover up your mess. Focus on the real issues—flood control anomalies, payola, and the officials who admitted they bribed.”
“Let the people see who really serves and who steals,” Rep. Duterte said, adding that all projects for Davao were “visible, built, and used by the people.”
He also questioned why the committee has not pursued other controversies, including alleged congressional insertions in the Department of Social Welfare and Development and Department of Labor and Employment, billions lost in the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation, and questions surrounding the Maharlika Investment Fund.
“I never meddled in budget hearings in Congress. I have delicadeza,” he said, hinting at a possible conflict of interest among House leaders.
Rep. Duterte emphasized that Davao “has nothing to hide,” recalling how he once sought the removal of a DPWH regional director over right-of-way corruption.
At the hearing, DPWH Undersecretary Maria Catalina Cabral confirmed that about P51 billion was allocated to Davao City’s congressional district between 2020 and 2022, the final years of the Duterte presidency.
Rep. Joel Chua of Manila began his questioning of Cabral by citing a 2024 Politiko report, which she affirmed, stating that Rep. Duterte’s district received P51 billion in allocations from 2020 to 2022—a period he pointed out coincided with the height of the pandemic.
The DPWH official initially said she would check their records first. “I have to check, Your Honor, because I am not certain of the number in the published news of Politiko.”
