Photo courtesy of Batangas 1st District Rep. Leandro Legarda Leviste/Facebook
Batangas 1st District Rep. Leandro Legarda Leviste on Thursday called on Palace press officer Claire Castro to check with Public Works Secretary Vince Dizon regarding alleged budget insertions by some cabinet officials.
Leviste made the statement after Castro described the allegations of secretaries being proponents of 2025 infrastructure insertions as “hearsay” with “no probative value.”
He acknowledged that Dizon has not yet released the list of proponents but said Castro could confirm the information directly with the DPWH chief.
“USec Claire can confirm with Sec Vince the data, which was provided by DPWH, with Sec Vince’s approval,” Leviste said, noting discussions about public release of the information last September.
Leviste added that supporting Sec Dizon’s push for transparency in the DPWH is important, stressing that an insertion does not automatically benefit the proponent.
Castro earlier told reporters that the Palace would only respond to documents authenticated by the DPWH and that all other claims would be considered “tsismis” or hearsay.
Leviste said the source of his claims can be verified through gadgets owned by former Public Works Undersecretary Maria Catalina Cabral.
Cabral, who was found unconscious near Bued River in Tuba, Benguet, was declared dead early Friday, prompting concerns about the safety and accessibility of her documents.
After her death, Leviste said he had a copy of the documents, leading Bicol Saro party-list Rep. Terry Ridon to urge him to release the files for public scrutiny.
Leviste later published a summary of allocations for 2025 infrastructure projects, showing per-district “allocables” and noting that total DPWH funding nationwide from 2023 to 2026 reached around P3.5 trillion, or P130,000 per family.