President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. has stressed the importance of building solid, evidence-based cases against individuals involved in alleged anomalous flood control projects, warning that weak charges could harm the government’s anti-corruption drive.
In a teaser for the latest episode of The BBM Podcast aired Sunday, Marcos said rushing cases without sufficient evidence could lead to dismissals and embolden offenders.
“Look, anong mangyayari: minadali natin, hindi kumpleto ang ebidensya natin, malabo ‘yung ebidensya natin pero pinilit natin, natalo ‘yung kaso. Can you imagine? I think that would be much, much worse,” he said.
The President emphasized that while many of those implicated are “not innocent,” any court case must be supported by strong and complete evidence. He also reminded government agencies to act strictly within the law.
“We have to follow the law. Otherwise, whatever we do is not legitimate. And we have to be very, very clear that we go after the guilty ones,” Marcos said.
On September 11, Marcos created the Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) to investigate suspected irregularities in Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) projects nationwide. The initiative follows his call for transparency in infrastructure spending, which he highlighted in his fourth State of the Nation Address (SONA) last July.
The President has also launched the Sumbong sa Pangulo platform, allowing citizens to report substandard or non-existent public works in their areas.
