“The accomplice to the crime of corruption is frequently our own indifference” — Jewish-American television actress and politician Bess Myerson
THE OFFICE OF the Ombudsman seemed to be grinding its axe on Senator Alan Peter Cayetano as it hinted at reopening the files on the 2019 Southeast Asian (SEA) Games sports facilities project to review possible violations.
The Ombudsman finds no double jeopardy because no charges were ever filed. To some extent, Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla could be right — or otherwise.
But regardless of where he’s coming from, Remulla has already instructed his staff to get the whole file from 2021 in order for him to “review” the records before he decides on the next course of action.
Asked to comment on Senator Alan Peter Cayetano, who served as chairperson of the Philippine Southeast Asian Games Organizing Committee (PHISGOC) in 2019, Remulla simply said: “There’s a time for everything.”
Pushed against the wall, Cayetano who leads the senate minority bloc hinted at resuming its investigation into the anomalous flood control projects while the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) probes into the alleged irregularities in the bidding and funding of the 2019 SEA Games projects.
Remulla knew for a fact that complaints filed against Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) secretary Vince Dizon and three others over the construction of sports facilities for the 2019 SEA Games had already been dismissed as early as December 2021 due to insufficient evidence. Dizon then was the BCDA chair.
Aside from Dizon, the other respondents were BCDA senior vice president for legal services Elvira Estanislao, Office of the Government Corporate Counsel (OGCC) lawyer Elpidio Vega, and Isaac David, director and representative of Malaysian construction firm MTD Capital Berhad for the SEA Games facilities at New Clark City in Tarlac.
The complaint filed against them alleged that the three public officials conspired in awarding MTD Capital Berhad a P8.51-billion joint venture agreement (JVA) for the construction of the sports facilities despite irregularities — lack of public bidding, absence of budget appropriation, and unauthorized “insertions and modifications” to the original contract.
Amid probe on the New Clark City Sports Complex, several athletes find the facility useful. The place enabled them to train and qualify for several competitions, including the Palarong Pambansa.
Accordingly, even as controversy surrounding the Sports Complex is reignited, student athletes the facility has given them the opportunity to take advantage of its world-class venue and training equipment, despite the Commission on Audit (CoA)’s flagging its operations years back for financial losses.
Based on official records, the complex cost a hefty P10 billion to make, with construction lasting a mere 18 months. It was built for the Philippines’ hosting stint of the 30th Southeast Asian (SEA) Games in 2019, but several controversies hounded the events.
State auditors told the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA), which manages the complex, that the annual maintenance of the facilities was greater than what it was profiting. In 2022, the BCDA spent more than P51 million on the operations and maintenance of the complex.
The venue only made P39.8 million in adjusted rent income, resulting in a P11.39 million loss.
The following year, the BCDA lost P5.77 million on the sports complex.
Requests for the BCDA’s comment on the matter have proven to be futile.
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