HINDI itinago ni Davao City Rep. Paolo “Polong” Duterte ang galit sa umano’y exposé ni ACT Teachers party-list Rep. Antonio Tinio hinggil sa mga kwestiyonableng flood control projects sa Davao City maging ang pag-iikot ng Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) sa kanilang lungsod.

Ayon kay Duterte, tila ginagawang “target” ang Davao City habang pinalalampas umano ang ghost projects sa Ilocos Norte, distrito ni House Majority Leader Sandro Marcos, anak ni Pangulong Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.

“And to the ICI: stop pretending this is a “national audit” when you keep flying your people — RETIRED POLICE, RECYCLED APPOINTEES, and non-engineers — to Davao just to take photos beside working projects. If you want credibility, send real engineers, not political operators paid by a bangag nga presidente,” pahayag pa ni Duterte.

Idinagdag pa ng kongresista, walang itinatago ang Davao City at lahat ng proyekto sa kanyang distrito, partikular ang flood control sa Davao at Matina River, ay naipatupad at nainspeksyon na ng Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) at Commission on Audit (COA).

“The structures exist. They are serving the people. They are not “ghosts” — unlike the kind of politics some people keep reviving every time they need attention,” pasaring pa pa ng anak ni dating Pangulong Rodrigo Duterte.

Tinio Hinamon Pumasyal sa Davao

“Tinio’s so-called exposé is nothing but a desperate and ignorant attempt to drag Davao into another circus of baseless accusations. You claim to have “uncovered” anomalies — but did you ever question DPWH with your so-called facts? Or did you just piece together numbers to sound relevant again?,” dagdag pa nito.

Bago ito ay isiniwalat ni Tinio na mula 2019 hanggang 2022 ay nakakuha umano ng P6.6 billion na halaga ng flood control projects subalit marami sa mga proyektong ito na nagkakahalaga ng P4.35 billion ang kuwestiyonable.

Hindi ito nagustuhan ni Rep. Duterte dahil pinupuntirya umano ni Tinio ang Davao City subalit nananahimik ang mga ito sa mga ghost at substandard projects sa Luzon na isiniwalat ni dating Ilocos Norte Governor Chavit Singson.

“Why are you silent there but loud in Davao, where projects are visible, verified, and functional?,” tanong pa ni Duterte kay Tinio na kanyang ininimbitahan na pumunta sa Davao City.

“So here’s my advice to Tinio: come to Davao, walk the riverbanks, see the projects, and talk to the people whose homes no longer flood because of those structures. Then maybe you’ll realize the only thing missing in your so-called investigation is the truth. Until then, stop using Davao as your political punching bag. We don’t owe anyone an apology for doing our job right,” litanya ni Duterte.

(BERNARD TAGUINOD)