’10 to 20 times’: DPWH witness says budget ‘errata’ insertions happened many times before

A Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) engineer on Tuesday, May 19, testified before the Third Division of the Sandiganbayan that the insertion of projects through “errata” or proposed amendments had allegedly happened several times in the past. Engineer Gerald Longoria, of the DPWH Programming Division, said similar instructions involving proposed project insertions had allegedly been carried out numerous times before. Asked by the court whether there had been previous instructions to include projects through errata, Longoria replied: “Opo (Yes).” “Many times po. Hindi ko na po mabilang po eh. Mga 10, 20 mga ganun (Many times already. I can no longer count them. Maybe around 10 or 20 times),” the witness said when further asked how many times such instructions were allegedly given. Longoria testified that proposed amendments were consolidated by their team before being attached to documents transmitted to Congress. “Lahat po ng proposed errata ng department, then yun na po nag-generate kami ng report—iyon po in-attach na sulat sa Congress as proposed amendments (All proposed errata of the department were consolidated, then we generated a report which was attached to the letter submitted to Congress as proposed amendments),” he said. Longoria also testified that some documents endorsed for inclusion did not always follow a standard format. He added that there were instances when unsigned and undated documents were allegedly received for inclusion in proposed amendments. “Undated, unsigned—mayroon din po (There were also undated and unsigned documents),” he said. Longoria likewise testified that former DPWH undersecretary Maria Catalina “Cathy” Cabral relayed to him a list of projects allegedly linked to former senator Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr. Funding request records sought During the hearing, the Sandiganbayan directed Longoria to submit documents involving requests from lawmakers for project funding and proposed amendments related to infrastructure projects. “The court is hereby ordering you to produce all request for funding—be it documentary or otherwise,” Associate Justice Ronald Moreno said. Likewise, the anti-graft court issued a subpoena duces tecum for the production of the documents. Longoria testified that requests for project funding were allegedly received throughout the year and that their office would encode projects based on instructions from higher officials. “All year-round po (All year round),” he said when asked when funding requests are usually received. Longoria testified that their office allegedly had no option but to encode project requests once instructions were given. He said that such requests came in different forms, including memos, letters, among others. He added that there was allegedly no definite format for some requests. In addition, the witness said that some project lists were allegedly endorsed to their office through Cabral without formal transmittal documents. The Third Division of the Sandiganbayan is hearing the malversation of public funds case linked to the alleged anomalous P92.8-million flood control project in Pandi, Bulacan.