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Advocates Philippines
Bonoan, DPWH Officials Face New Ombudsman Complaint Over Bid-Rigging Allegations
Photo credit: Senate PH
In a major development that intensifies scrutiny of government infrastructure spending, Task Force Kasanag (TFK) founder John Chiong filed criminal and administrative complaints on Thursday with the Office of the Ombudsman against former DPWH Secretary Manuel Bonoan, senior agency officials, and executives of several foreign construction firms.
The complaints allege a systematic bid-rigging scheme, manipulation of contract budgets, unlawful disqualification of legitimate bidders, and irregular awarding of multi-billion peso projects. Named respondents include Undersecretary Ador Canlas, Undersecretary Emil Sadain, several members of the DPWH Bids and Awards Committee, and four international construction companies involved in major public works contracts.
According to Chiong, the cases involve at least five foreign-funded flood control and infrastructure projects, including the Malabang Viaduct in Marawi City, the Ranao River Basin Flood Control project in Lanao del Norte, and three packages of the Laguna Lakeshore Road Network. The complaint claims that officials posted zero approved budgets for these contracts, later allowed bids above those ceilings, and failed to publicly open financial offers — practices said to undermine transparency and competitiveness.
The filings argue that these actions collectively point to a deliberate attempt to steer projects toward preferred firms. Bonoan and other respondents have not issued public responses as of press time.
This complaint comes amid ongoing investigations into DPWH flood control projects, which have drawn attention from Senate probes and watchdog groups over alleged “ghost” or substandard projects. During his tenure, Bonoan also faced criticism for submitting inaccurate project data to Malacañang, and he resigned in September 2025 amid growing controversy.
As the Ombudsman begins reviewing these new complaints along with other pending cases, public attention remains on questions of governance, accountability, and the integrity of infrastructure spending in the Philippines.
The complaints allege a systematic bid-rigging scheme, manipulation of contract budgets, unlawful disqualification of legitimate bidders, and irregular awarding of multi-billion peso projects. Named respondents include Undersecretary Ador Canlas, Undersecretary Emil Sadain, several members of the DPWH Bids and Awards Committee, and four international construction companies involved in major public works contracts.
According to Chiong, the cases involve at least five foreign-funded flood control and infrastructure projects, including the Malabang Viaduct in Marawi City, the Ranao River Basin Flood Control project in Lanao del Norte, and three packages of the Laguna Lakeshore Road Network. The complaint claims that officials posted zero approved budgets for these contracts, later allowed bids above those ceilings, and failed to publicly open financial offers — practices said to undermine transparency and competitiveness.
The filings argue that these actions collectively point to a deliberate attempt to steer projects toward preferred firms. Bonoan and other respondents have not issued public responses as of press time.
This complaint comes amid ongoing investigations into DPWH flood control projects, which have drawn attention from Senate probes and watchdog groups over alleged “ghost” or substandard projects. During his tenure, Bonoan also faced criticism for submitting inaccurate project data to Malacañang, and he resigned in September 2025 amid growing controversy.
As the Ombudsman begins reviewing these new complaints along with other pending cases, public attention remains on questions of governance, accountability, and the integrity of infrastructure spending in the Philippines.
Feb 27, 2026
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