New DPWH Chief Dizon Seeks Guidance from Past Leaders Amidst Corruption Concerns
MANILA, Philippines – Newly appointed Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Secretary Jaime “Jimmy” Dizon is consulting with former DPWH secretaries in an effort to address widespread concerns about corruption within the agency, notably stemming from congressional insertions in the national budget.
Dizon met with former DPWH Secretaries Rogelio Singson and Alfredo de Jesus to solicit their expertise and build a team to root out irregularities, according to reports. Singson,who served under President Benigno S. Aquino III from 2010 to 2016, publicly identified congressional budget insertions as the primary source of “massive corruption” within the DPWH.
“Total local project insertions in 2025 is about P450 billion,” Singson stated, adding that the problem extends beyond simply visible additions to the budget.He cited former DPWH Secretary Manuel Bonoan‘s experience,noting that Bonoan was “blindside[d]” because some of his planned national projects were “carved out and replaced with local insertions” during the transition from the National Expenditure Program (NEP) to the General Appropriations Act (GAA).
Lawmakers in the House Committee on Appropriations recently highlighted a practice of breaking down large projects into smaller ones, capped at P150 million, to allow for implementation at the district level rather than through the DPWH’s regional offices.
dizon has already taken a notable step towards reform by requesting courtesy resignations from all DPWH officials, from top to bottom. He emphasized his commitment to identifying and holding accountable those involved in corrupt practices. “I am asking for help from people who I can trust, who are the good people there. We have to find the bad eggs, take them out, make them accountable,” Dizon said.
He also plans to leverage the expertise of former DPWH officials currently working with international organizations like the World Bank and the Asian development Bank.
Despite acknowledging the presence of corruption, singson stressed that many dedicated and honest individuals remain within the DPWH. “Six years akong and’yan, ‘me mga matitino naman d’yan. Hindi naman lahat d’yan korap [I was there for six years. There are honorable people there. Not everyone was corrupt],” he said.
Meanwhile, de Jesus, who led the DPWH from 1990 to 1993 under Presidents Corazon Aquino and Fidel V. Ramos, denied authorship of an open letter circulating on social media alleging multi-billion peso budget insertions during the tenure of former DPWH Secretary and current Senator Mark Villar. However, he acknowledged that the allegations warrant inquiry, stating, “Many of those are worth looking into but you cannot just make accusations like that, you have to have proof.”
