Members of the Pinagkaisang Samahan ng mga Tsuper at Operators Nationwide (PISTON), together with flood-affected communities, stage a rally in Mendiola, Manila, on Thursday to denounce government corruption and demand accountability in flood control projects. Maria Tan, ABS-CBN News
MANILA — House members and senators allegedly engaged in corrupt practices involving flood control and other infrastructure projects should be the first to be brought to account, former Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Winnie Monsod said Sunday.
Monsod lamented that there was "little focus" on politicians and noted the prominence of government contractors and public works officials in the national conversation regarding the flood control scandal.
Lawmakers tagged in the controversy have all denied the allegations.
Sens. Jinggoy Estrada and Joel Villanueva, whom sacked Department of Public Works and Highways engineer Brice Hernandez named in a House probe, have claimed attempts to discredit them.
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Leyte Rep. Martin Romualdez, tagged but not implicated directly, stepped down as House speaker to allow the Independent Commission for Infrastructure to "pursue its mandate freely and fully, without doubt, without interference, without undue influence."
MONSOD: POLITICIANS 'GOT THE MOST'
Monsod pointed out that it was the lawmakers "who get the most of where the corruption goes" as they were the ones responsible for finalizing the annual national budget.
"Where does it all start? Where do these projects start? They all start with the proponents. These projects would not be undertaken without the proponents," Monsod told ABS-CBN News.
"What about the other congressmen in Bulacan? Why haven't they been questioned?" the economist said.
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Monsod made the call as Filipinos on Sunday turned out on the streets of Metro Manila and other parts of the country to condemn the massive corruption in flood control infrastructure, which involved billions of pesos in funds.
'WALANG DAPAT MATIRA SA MGA KORAP'
Students, activists, church groups, civil society organizations, and celebrities were expected to join the anti-corruption demonstrations, which coincided with the commemoration of the declaration of Martial Law in 1972.
"I really think that if we are to get satisfaction from this, we have to focus on the congressmen and the senators who are involved in this terrible, terrible tragedy. They should be the first ones brought to account," said Monsod, who will also join the protests.
"They should have to account what their role is in all this because they have the key role," she said, noting that government contractors are just "pawns."
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"Buti nga mag-start tayo nang malinis … Ayun nga ang kailangan walang dapat matira sa mga korap," she said.
(It would be good to have a clean start, there should be nobody left of the corrupt)
Many lawmakers have been implicated in the alleged flood control corruption scheme — including those at the top, which led to leadership shakeups — but they have denied any wrongdoing.
An independent commission created by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. vowed to exact accountability on everyone, including his allies and relatives.
"If walang makulong dito, from top to bottom, naglolokohan lang tayo," Public Works Secretary Vince Dizon said in a separate interview Sunday.
(If nobody is jailed for this, from top to bottom, then we are just fooling ourselves)
"And this is just going to keep on happening again and again and again."
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