Department of Public Works and Highways Secretary Vince Dizon at the Kapihan ng Samahang Plaridel at Rizal Park Hotel in Manila on Friday (March 13, 2026). He discussed the status of the reforms being made at the Department of Public Works and Highways as well as updates on the graft and corruption cases against DPWH officials and contractors. (PNA photo by Yancy Lim)
The Department of Public Works and Highways will press on with filing cases against officials and personnel linked to anomalous flood control projects, with Public Works Secretary Vince Dizon vowing that accountability efforts will continue.
Speaking at the Kapihan ng Samahang Plaridel on Friday, Dizon said the agency remains firm in bringing erring DPWH officials before the Office of the Ombudsman.
“We will continue referring cases before the Office of the Ombudsman,” Dizon said.
Pressed for details on the charges and the identities of those involved, Dizon declined to elaborate, saying the matter would be left to the Ombudsman to disclose.
More than 40 individuals, including at least 20 DPWH officials and personnel, have already been hit with graft and corruption complaints over their alleged involvement in questionable flood control projects, underscoring the government’s intensified crackdown on irregularities in public infrastructure spending.
At the same briefing, Dizon also turned attention to ongoing works along the Maharlika Highway, saying the current repairs across the vital transport corridor are only meant to serve as a temporary fix ahead of the Holy Week rush.
“What we are doing now along Maharlika Highway is just a temporary short-term solution as we want our travelers to have smooth travels this Holy Week,” he said.
Dizon said reblocking operations are now in their final stages, with only a few road segments left to be completed before the Lenten exodus. “Current projects now are reblocking, only few segments left. We need to finish the works before Holy Week,” he added.
He said the government is preparing for a larger and more extensive rehabilitation effort once the holiday season ends, with procurement and bidding to begin after Holy Week.
“After Holy Week, we will start with the procurement and bidding for the extensive rehabilitation projects,” Dizon said.
The planned rehabilitation will cover key stretches in Quezon, Bicol, Camarines Sur, Albay, and Samar, areas considered crucial to ensuring smoother and safer travel along one of the country’s most important road networks.
While no project cost has been finalized, Dizon said the department has already completed the designs and is now moving toward the next phase of implementation.
“We don’t have the estimate yet, what we have right now are the designs,” he said.
The DPWH is targeting to complete the major rehabilitation works by June 2027.
