Batangas 1st District Representative Leandro Leviste urged Palace Press Officer Usec. Claire Castro to coordinate with Public Works Secretary Vince Dizon regarding the files he released, which were allegedly given to him by former Usec. Maria Catalina Cabral.

The move came after Castro stated in a message that the Palace would only respond to Leviste's claim if the files had been authenticated by the DPWH; otherwise, the matter would remain “hearsay.” The files reportedly outline the ₱3.5 trillion DPWH budget from the previous years.

“The Palace will only respond to the documents authenticated by DPWH. Other than these, they will be considered as hearsay or tsismis which have no probative value.”

Leviste said he had met with the late Cabral in her office on June 11 and subsequently followed up with a letter to the DPWH on August 11 regarding the same issue.

He added that he and Dizon had discussed releasing the budget data to the public in September, but acknowledged that the DPWH had not yet made the information public, partly because some stakeholders requested confidentiality.

“The DPWH can easily confirm this data, so the public can be informed on the allocations of each district and Congressman,” Leviste said, emphasizing that transparency is crucial, as a district’s budget—such as ₱10 billion per year—is meant for public projects and does not automatically benefit any individual proponent.

Prior to this statement, Leviste had released batches of files related to the late Undersecretary Cabral, revealing detailed budget statements and allocations linked to DPWH projects.