Mark Lapid, Former DOT Heads Face Legal Charges Over Boracay Sewerage System
Mark Lapid and other former Tourism executives are now facing graft charges over the Boracay water and sewerage system project.
Two Boracay residents filed graft charges against the Former Philippine Tourism Authority general manager Mark Lapid, former Department of Tourism (DOT) secretaries Wanda Teo and Mon Jimenez.
Rod Padilla and Roberto Gelito filed the complaints against Lapid and ex-DOT heads for their alleged connection with a water and sewerage system project in Boracay last May 08, 2018.
The complainants are claiming that Lapid joined a venture deal with the Manila Water Company Incorporated (MWCI) for the improvement of operations and maintenance of the Boracay Waterworks and Sewerage System in 2009.
PTA board members including former Public Works and Highways Secretary Rogelio Singson, former Environment and Natural Resources Secretary Ramon Paje, Carlos Honorio Estepa, Vivian Otaza, and Lucas Nunag were also facing charges.
“However, PTA, then represented by herein respondents Lapid and PTA board members and officers, demonstrated clear bias and gave undue advantage to MWCI from the processing of the unsolicited proposal, during the negotiations of the terms and conditions of the JV Agreement and Concession Agreement, up to the execution of the said agreements,” the complainants said quoted by ABS-CBN.
The Boracay residents said that the agreement is disadvantageous to the government as PTA should surrender its water rights and facilities, which built under Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) loan program and indebted to Boracay Island Water Company (BIWC) of about P60 million.
Here are some officials from the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority board members under the Duterte administration who were included in the complaint:
- Wanda Teo
- Interior Local Government Officer-in-Charge Eduardo Año
- Environment Secretary Roy Cimatu
- Public Works and Highways Secretary Mark Villar
- Tourism Promotions Board Chief Operating Officer Cesar Montano
- Epimaco Densing III
- Marco Bautista
- Pocholo Paragas
- Karen Jimeno
- Anthony Edsel Conrad Tupaz
- Maximilian Anthony Fernandez
- Datu Abul Khayr Alonto
- Elizaldy Co
- Roberto Teo
- Roy Martin
- Maria Vida Stoifl
- Catherine Turvill
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