House Infrastructure Committee Co-Chair and Bicol Saro Party-list Representative Terry Ridon has renewed his call for the Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) to make portions of its hearings public amid the ongoing probe into the flood control scandal.
In a media briefing on Wednesday, Ridon said the ICI must not conduct its investigations entirely behind closed doors, stressing that even the judiciary allows public access to certain parts of its deliberations to restore public trust amid growing outrage over alleged government corruption.
“We have been stating this previously already, is for the ICI to make a determination on which parts of the proceedings can actually be made public, which part of the proceedings will remain in executive session,” Ridon said.
“As an example, at ito na 'yung halimbawa natin nung nakaraan, yung mga babasahin na mga affidavits. Anyway, it will be a public document. Anyway, babasahin din ba talaga ito sa ICI. Dapat publicly basahin ito ng lahat ng mga resource persons na ma-invite. And including yung mga initial inquiries ng mga commissioners relating to the affidavit, which is a public document. Pwede tayong magsimula doon at imungkahi ito sa ICI,” he said.
The call for openness comes as public anger mounts over the so-called “ghost projects” linked to the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) and several private contractors.
A recent survey showed that 60 percent of Filipinos feel outrage or guilt when thinking about corruption in government, while another 30 percent feel fear or anxiety.
“Well, syempre 60 plus 30 is 90% ill feelings towards how [the] government has been doing its job, particularly on flood control infrastructure and how we actually implemented it,” he said.
“Which is why mataas talaga yung expectation ng mga kababayan natin, not just on Congress and the Senate on our investigations, but more importantly on the Independent Commission for Infrastructure, and of course the other law enforcement agencies that we have like the Ombudsman, na talagang may managot po ng mga personalidad na napangalanan dito sa entire flood control controversy,” Ridon added.
However, the lawmaker said the ICI must strike a balance between confidentiality and transparency, especially when handling public records such as affidavits, audit reports, and contractor lists.
Terry Ridon said the ICI should prioritize building airtight cases rather than rushing to file charges in connection with the alleged anomalies in flood control projects.
He acknowledged public frustration over the pace of the investigation but emphasized that a careful and thorough process is necessary to ensure accountability.
"Kailangan muna natin maglinaw. I think the marching order of the President is for the ICI and all law enforcement agencies to be able to file airtight cases. So, ibig sabihin, it is not a question of time, it is not a question of speed. It is a question of whether or not the evidence actually exists already to make an actual conviction against all personalities," he stated.
The ICI, created to independently probe irregularities in infrastructure spending, has been conducting closed-door inquiries since its formation this September.
