The National Bureau of Investigation is examining 51 flood control projects in Davao City after investigators identified potential irregularities, including projects suspected of being ghost or substandard works and at least one project that appears to have received funding multiple times.
NBI Director Melvin Matibag said the bureau inspected 100 flood control projects in the city and flagged 51 for further investigation. Six of those were described as strong candidates for possible ghost projects, although the investigation has not yet established criminal liability.
The investigation has also uncovered a project that allegedly carried the same coordinates but was funded five times under different project titles. Matibag said the project received two allocations of P21 million and three allocations of P22 million within the same General Appropriations Act budget year.
The financial scale of the investigation has also grown. The NBI initially cited around P1.9 billion in flood control projects awarded to a single contractor, but after coordinating with the Commission on Audit, Matibag said the figure was actually about P7 billion covering projects awarded from 2018 to 2024.
Investigators are examining projects involving contractors including Genesis88 Construction, Gemma Construction and Agong Construction. The NBI is looking into whether procurement procedures were properly followed and whether any projects were incomplete, substandard or nonexistent.
The probe has already reached the Department of Public Works and Highways. DPWH Region XI Director Juby Blancaver Cordon appeared before the NBI on Sept. 24 and submitted 10 boxes of documents covering the projects under investigation. The records are being reviewed by investigators to determine whether there is sufficient evidence for possible charges.
The NBI has stressed that being awarded government projects does not by itself establish wrongdoing by a contractor, government official or politician. Matibag said investigators would first examine the bidding and procurement process and would pursue charges only if evidence supports them.
The investigation has also become politically sensitive because some of the projects were implemented in the congressional district represented by Davao City Rep. Paolo “Pulong” Duterte. Duterte has questioned whether the investigation is being conducted selectively, while Matibag has rejected the allegation and said the NBI is examining flood control projects in other parts of the country as well.
The NBI is expected to obtain additional records from the Commission on Audit and may subpoena contractors and other individuals after reviewing the documents already submitted by DPWH. Matibag said the bureau would also publicly announce if investigators ultimately find insufficient evidence to file cases.
For now, the findings remain part of an ongoing investigation rather than established proof of corruption. But the number of projects under scrutiny, the reported P7-billion contract value and the discovery of potentially repeated funding have placed Davao City’s flood-control spending under significantly closer examination.
The next stage of the probe will depend on what investigators find in the project records, procurement documents and financial data — with the NBI now working to determine whether the red flags point to administrative errors, procurement violations or conduct that could lead to criminal cases.
