SEN. Panfilo Lacson on Tuesday pushed for the forfeiture of the illegally reclaimed land along the Laguna de Bay shoreline in Taguig City in favor of the government.
This, after Senate Minority Leader Alan Peter Cayetano fired back at Lacson, who he said would drown in a “flood of truth” if he visited Taguig.
Lacson countered that Cayetano might be the one drowning in the truth after his team uncovered a “cauldron of worms” involving ghost slope protection projects and the illegal reclamation of portions of Laguna Lake.
He said his team’s finding was validated after a meeting Monday evening with officials of the Philippine Reclamation Authority (PRA), who talked about harassment tactics employed by Cayetano.
“Our Taguig City case study has opened a ‘cauldron of worms’ after my meeting with Philippine Reclamation Authority officials last night — from ghost slope protection projects to illegally reclaimed tracts of land covering Laguna Lake,” Lacson said in a social media post.
“Aside from the PRA and the Ombudsman, we will closely coordinate with the DPWH (Department of Public Works and Highways) central office, LLDA (Laguna Lake Development Authority) and other concerned agencies not only to jail the crooks behind these grossly anomalous and patently illegal activities but also forfeit the already reclaimed lake shore areas in favor of the national government. There is no turning back!” he added.
Lacson said PRA officials confirmed the harassment tactics employed by Cayetano during budget deliberations in November 2025, when the budget for the Office of the President (OP) was taken up for plenary debates.
The PRA is under the administrative control of the OP, which streamlines the national policy on land reclamation.
“The same officials likewise disclosed physical intimidation when they conducted on site inspection along C6 in the lake shore area where the illegal reclamation activities are taking place,” Lacson said.
Last weekend, Lacson cited evidence linking Cayetano to reclamation projects along Taguig’s lake shore development that lacked the required permits from agencies including the Department of Environment and Natural Resources.
The projects were funded using appropriations in the national budget that were meant for slope protection projects.
At the time, he said resource persons who knew about this were harassed and intimidated, especially during committee hearings.
Lacson and his team turned over to the Ombudsman the evidence they gathered from at least five case studies on anomalous infrastructure projects in Taguig.
The senator said the evidence points to Cayetano virtually controlling DPWH operations and other related activities in Taguig, with district engineers being replaced if they acted without his approval, along with a possible 33-percent kickback structure in infrastructure projects in the city.
Over the weekend, Cayetano denied Lacson’s claims, saying that the current state of Taguig City’s flood problem has significantly improved in the last 30 to 40 years.
“You won’t drown in a flood here. I mean, barring 10 days of rain or an extraordinary rainfall... compared to the other Metro Manila cities, only flash floods in certain areas occur,” Cayetano told Lacson after the latter turned down his invitation to visit Taguig City as he “might drown in flood water.” “Well, Senator Lacson, you won’t drown in Taguig, you will drown in the truth. When lies are constantly told, it is the truth that can drown you,” he added.
