Overpriced farm-to-market roads (FMR) are being pushed for investigation by Senate Finance Committee Chairman Sherwin “Win” Gatchalian, urging both the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee and the Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) to look into the issue.
“Ako personally, I will recommend sa Blue Ribbon na tingnan itong farm-to-market roads kasi nga parehong mga contractors e. At ire-recommend ko rin sa ICI na tingnan rin nila itong FMR,” Gatchalian said during the Kapihan sa Senado forum on Thursday.
He noted that the cost per meter of some FMR projects ballooned from P15,000 to as much as P300,000. “Talagang garapalan na yung overpricing.”
He explained that the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) typically estimates FMR construction at P15,000 per meter or P15 million per kilometer. However, according to Gatchalian, Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr., a former businessman, believes the roads can be built for as low as P10,000 per meter or P10 million per kilometer. Despite this, Gatchalian said they found projects in several areas costing nearly P300,000 per meter, or P300 million per kilometer, indicating severe overpricing.
“No’ng una ayaw ko nga maniwala e. Kasi 300 milyon per kilometer, parang gumawa ka na ng tulay no’n,” he expressed, initially not believing the project cost, however, with the DPWH uncovering 421 ghost projects, he said nothing is impossible when corruption is involved. “Talagang pag korapsyon, gagawing ghost project, gagawing overpriced, basta lang maka-kubra ng pera.”
FMR same contractor for flood control projects
Gatchalian highlighted a pattern in the distribution of the FMR projects for 2023 and 2024, with Region 5, which is in Bicol, receiving the largest allocation, followed by Region 7, which includes Tacloban and Leyte.
Upon reviewing the 2024 contractors, he found that three are among the top 15 contractors for flood control projects. One of them is Hi-Tone Construction & Development Corp., which is reportedly owned by the brother of former Ako Bicol Partylist Representative Zaldy Co.
The senator said he does not believe that the overlap is merely coincidental, pointing out that contractors handling flood control projects are also involved in the FMR projects, and possibly in road and irrigation projects as well. He added that this pattern is currently being scrutinized by his team.
Thus, according to Gatchalian, Co may face further scrutiny, not only over flood control projects, but also over the allocation of FMR funds, as a substantial portion of the FMR budget reportedly went to the Bicol Region and was among the top recipients.
While several regions have been flagged for overpriced FMR projects, Bicol received the largest share of funds, said Gatchalian.
Moreover, the implementation of the projects caused concern to Gatchalian, as some roads were significantly shortened, from a planned 10 kilometers to just one or two kilometers built. Because of this, he recommended transferring the implementation and bidding of FMR projects to the Department of Agriculture (DA), arguing that personnel in the DPWH have already been compromised. He warned that if DPWH continues to handle FMR projects by 2026, the same overpricing and irregularities seen in past years are likely to happen again.
2026 Budget of FMR
A proposed P16 billion is earmarked for FMR in the 2026 national budget. However, Gatchalian expressed doubts about supporting the allocation, warning that the funds could once again be misused.
“Tingin ko matagal na pag-aayos ‘to e,” he said. “Doon ako kinakabahan dahil yung pondong ilalagay natin doon, kung parehong tao lang ang mga gagawa no’n, parehong corruption lang ang mangyayari.”
