Pres. Bongbong Marcos Asked about Fate of ICI
BONGBONG MARCOS – The President confirmed that the work of the Independent Commission for Infrastructure or ICI is ‘coming towards the end’.
Countless Filipinos were disappointed by the alleged multi-billion flood control corruption that implicated several government officials. A lot of congressmen and officials of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) were tagged in the supposed scam.
Some senators and former members of the Senate were also tagged in the flood control mess. Thousands of Filipinos joined the “Trillion Peso March” last September and November to call for an end to corruption.
Amid the issue, Pres. Ferdinand Marcos Jr. ordered the creation of an independent commission with a subpoena power to investigate the issue. The executive order led to the creation of the Independent Commission for Infrastructure or ICI.
The ICI is a three-member body led by former Justice Andres Reyes Jr. It invited several government officials who were tagged in the flood control mess including presidential cousin and former House Speaker Martin Romualdez and senators Chiz Escudero and Joel Villanueva.
Leyte Congressman Martin Romualdez resigned from being the House Speaker after he was accused by the Discayas of allegedly receiving kickbacks from the flood control projects. According to him, he stepped down from the position so the ICI can fully implement its mandate to investigate.
Marcos Jr. claimed that neither Romualdez nor his allies in politics will be spared from the flood control probe of the ICI. Presidential son and Ilocos Norte Cong. Sandro Marcos also appeared before the commission after he was tagged in the budget insertion issue.
However, recently, two (2) members of the ICI have resigned. Pres. Bongbong Marcos was asked about the fate of the commission amid the ongoing public call for accountability over the flood control mess.
Based on a post of News5 on social media, Pres. Bongbong Marcos confirmed that the work of the ICI is coming to an end. According to him, the commission has already investigated all that it has to investigate.
“It depends on how much work they still have left. We will still what they can do next. But they really are coming to the end. Lahat ng kailangang imbestigahan na imbestigahan na nila. Maybe there are one or two other loose ends that they want to clear out,” Marcos Jr. said.
Furthermore, based on another post, Pres. Bongbong Marcos stressed that while there is a need for the ICI to investigate, the commission will continue its work. Otherwise, the focus of the investigation will be in the hands of the Ombudsman and the Department of Justice.
“Again, It all depends on the work that ICI still has… Kapag need pa, then we will. But if the work is done, kung naibigay na lahat ng info sa DOJ at sa Ombudsman, then the focus now of the investigation will go thru the DOJ and the Ombudsman,” the President said.