MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) has thrown its support behind the Senate's decision to strip P8.8 billion in funding for 295 projects from the proposed 2027 National Expenditure Program (NEP).
The removal was due to insufficient documentation as the agency escalates its campaign against ghost infrastructure projects, DPWH Secretary Giovanni Lopez said on Wednesday.
The move follows a directive from President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. requiring the DPWH to ensure that every project proposed for the 2027 spending plan is backed by supporting documents, Lopez said.
“It was very clear from the President himself: No complete documents, no projects,” the DPWH chief said.
The issue surfaced after former Public Works Secretary Vince Dizon told the Senate that 295 projects lacked the required documentation from district engineering offices (DEOs) and recommended that they be dropped from the proposal.
Lopez affirmed that the reforms launched under Dizon will carry forward, noting that project proponents must now submit an Approved Program of Work and validated geo-tagged photos, among others.
They are also required to submit a Certificate of Implementability, and either a Masterplan, Feasibility Study, or Regional Development Council/Local Development Council endorsement—or a Certificate of Non-Objection—before any project can be included in the 2027 NEP, the DPWH said.
"The strict instruction of President Marcos to us is that no project lacking documents should be allowed to slip through, so that we can ensure our fellow Filipinos will physically and actually feel the projects we implement," Lopez said.
"Secretary Vince Dizon made sure that projects included in the government budget must be transparent, which is why we must implement them properly and correctly," he said.
