By Benjamin Pulta
MANILA – The Department of Justice (DOJ) on Friday said it is not inclined to admit couple Pacifico “Curlee” and Cezarah Rowena “Sarah” Discaya as state witnesses in the ongoing investigation into ghost flood control projects.
“Given what we know there should be restitution. Kaya sinabi ko kay Senate President (Vicente Sotto III), kung ako, ayoko na ibigay yung status (as state witness), kasi hindi forthcoming (That’s why I told Senate President, for me, I won’t give the status as state witness, because they are not forthcoming),” Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said in an interview with reporters.
“You have to tell the whole truth, di pwedeng mamili. Dapat sabihin nya yung buong kasaysayan (They cannot choose what to divulge. They should tell the whole story),“ he added.
He added that the government will also screen the qualification of other persons, such as the engineers involved in the controversy, to turn government witnesses.
“We will evaluate (them). We have several laws that govern state witnesses” he said.
The Procurement Service-Department of Budget and Management (PS-DBM) earlier cancelled the Philippine Government Electronic Procurement System (PhilGEPS) membership of nine companies associated with the Discayas.
The PS-DBM is also preparing to remove more firms — including SYMS Construction Trading and Wawao Builder — from the registry, once the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) issues official blacklisting orders.
The move is in line with the New Government Procurement Act (Republic Act 12009), which mandates that once an implementing agency blacklists a contractor, its PhilGEPS membership must be revoked, effectively disqualifying the firm from all government bidding activities. (PNA)
