The couple, Pacifico and Cezarah Discaya (PNA photo by Avito Dalan)
Ombudsman case over ₱53.9 million Calumpit project deepens legal scrutiny of contractor couple and public works officials
MANILA — A Bulacan court has ordered the arrest of contractor Pacifico “Curlee” Discaya II and 10 others in a malversation case involving a ₱53.9-million flood-control project in Calumpit, the latest turn in the government’s widening examination of public infrastructure contracts.
The order by Bulacan Regional Trial Court Branch 20 followed the filing of graft and malversation charges by the Office of the Ombudsman against Discaya, his wife, Cezarah Rowena “Sarah” Discaya, a company officer and several Department of Public Works and Highways personnel.
The case centers on DPWH Contract ID No. 22CC0058, which covered the rehabilitation of a river protection structure in Calumpit. According to the Ombudsman, transactions under the project allegedly gave St. Timothy Construction Corp. unwarranted benefits totaling ₱53,917,731.92 and caused financial injury to the government.
The accused named in the Ombudsman case are the Discaya couple; Ma. Roma Angeline Discaya Rimando of St. Timothy Construction Corp.; and DPWH Bulacan 1st District Engineering Office personnel Merg Jaron Caparas Laus, Brice Ericson Diaz Hernandez, Jaypee De Leon Mendoza, Ernesto Cosay Galang, Norberto de Leon Santos, Lorenzo Alcoriza Pagtalunan, Juanito Coronel Mendoza and Floralyn Yutuc Simbulan.
The Ombudsman alleged that payment for the project’s first billing was released despite an unapproved disbursement voucher. It also alleged that full payments for dredging and embankment items were made without sufficient basis for computation or supporting documents to establish project accomplishment.
The charges include graft under Section 3(e) of Republic Act No. 3019, or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act, and malversation of public funds through falsification of public documents under the Revised Penal Code. Recommended bail for the graft charge was set at ₱90,000 for each accused. No bail was recommended for the complex malversation charge, according to the filing.
The Bulacan arrest warrant covers Curlee Discaya, Sarah Discaya, Rimando, former DPWH engineers Hernandez and Mendoza, and six others: Laus, Galang, Santos, Pagtalunan, Juanito Mendoza and Simbulan.
Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla said Curlee Discaya, who has been detained in the Senate after being cited in contempt during a Blue Ribbon Committee inquiry, would be turned over to the Department of the Interior and Local Government on Monday, June 8, and then brought to Bulacan. The Pasay City Regional Trial Court earlier upheld the Senate’s authority to issue the contempt citation and dismissed Discaya’s petition questioning his detention.
The Bulacan case comes amid separate pending matters involving the Discayas. Sarah Discaya has been reported detained at the Lapu-Lapu City Jail Female Dormitory in connection with a Davao Occidental graft and malversation case over an alleged ₱96.5-million flood-control project, where the defense has disputed the “ghost project” characterization. The couple is also facing BIR tax complaints involving ₱7.18 billion in alleged liabilities, separate from the Ombudsman cases.
The filing of charges and the issuance of arrest warrants mark procedural steps in a criminal case, not findings of guilt. Prosecutors must still prove the allegations in court, where all accused are entitled to the presumption of innocence unless convicted beyond reasonable doubt.
