Antique citizens file raps vs lawmaker, others over PHP 7.3-billion projects

By Rjay Zuriaga Castor and Juliane Judilla

More than 20 current and former government officials, including Uswag Ilonggo Party-list Rep. James Ang Jr., and executives of five construction firms are facing criminal and administrative complaints before the Office of the Ombudsman over alleged irregularities in PHP 7.3 billion worth of infrastructure projects in Antique.

Private citizens from the Antique municipalities of San Remigio, Pandan, and San Jose de Buenavista filed five separate complaints on Thursday.

The complaints allege violations of anti-graft, procurement, environmental, auditing, land-use, and criminal laws in connection with 91 infrastructure contracts implemented under Department of Public Works and Highways programs beginning in 2017.

The complainants, backed by the civic advocacy group Amlig Antique Alliance, described the cases as only the “opening salvo.” Additional complaints covering 86 more contracts are being prepared, they said.

The alliance said the filings followed years of advocacy that included formal petitions, letters to government agencies, and public demonstrations in San Jose de Buenavista.

“The citizens of Antique have done everything right, yet our leaders have chosen to remain completely silent. We do not deserve this abandonment,” the alliance said in a statement.

The group also criticized national agencies for what it called prolonged inaction.

It said it submitted a petition on May 8, 2026, asking DPWH Secretary Vince Dizon to investigate the projects, but that no decisive action followed.

Amlig is Kinaray-a and Hiligaynon for “to safeguard” or “to take care of.” 

More than 20 respondents named

The complaints name respondents from national agencies, local government units, and private construction firms.

Ang was identified in the complaints as the former authorized managing officer of Allencon Development Corp.

Also named are eight current and former DPWH Region 6 directors: Sanny Boy Oropel, Jose Al Fruto, Joel Limpengco, Denise Maria Ayag, Lea Delfinado, Nerie Bueno, Wenceslao Leano Jr., and Tiburcio Canlas.

Other respondents include current and former district engineers and division chiefs of the DPWH Antique District Engineering Office, project engineers, and municipal officials of Laua-an and San Jose de Buenavista.

The complaints also name officials of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, the Environmental Management Bureau, and the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples.

Officers and board members of Sunwest Inc., International Builders Corp., Allencon Development Corp., A.M. Oreta & Co. Inc., and J.E. Tico Construction Co. Inc. are likewise named.

Under the Rules of Procedure of the Office of the Ombudsman, the filing of a complaint is not a finding of liability. Respondents may submit counter-affidavits and other evidence before the Ombudsman determines whether probable cause exists.

The filings land amid sustained national scrutiny of DPWH contracting, which drew congressional and audit attention over flood-control and road projects and the concentration of awards among a small set of firms.

Five projects under scrutiny

The complaints focus on five Antique projects that allegedly proceeded despite environmental and procurement violations.

The PHP 95.5 million San Jose Coastal Road, Seawall and Esplanade (Package 2) in San Jose de Buenavista, awarded to J.E. Tico Construction Co., was relocated to an area with marine turtle nesting sites, complainants alleged.

The PHP 193 million Pandan–Ibajay Road project was undertaken by the A.M. Oreta & Co.–Allencon Development Corp. joint venture. It forms part of a PHP 1.6 billion road network launched in 2017 to connect Pandan, Antique, and Ibajay, Aklan.

The PHP 148.8 million Panay East–West Road (Package 1) in Valderrama was awarded to the International Builders Corp.–Allencon Development Corp. joint venture.

The PHP 93.6 million Laua-an Ridge View to Aklan River (Phase II) project was undertaken by Sunwest Inc.

The fifth project is the PHP 145.5 million Maybunga–San Ramon Road in Laua-an, also awarded to Sunwest Inc.

The two Laua-an roads proceeded within forestlands and the ancestral domain of the Iraynon-Bukidnon Indigenous community without required environmental clearances and without free, prior, and informed consent, the complaints said.

Free, prior, and informed consent is a mandatory step under the Indigenous Peoples’ Rights Act for projects inside ancestral domains, obtained through a process facilitated by the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples.

Suspension, Sandiganbayan cases sought

The complainants accuse the respondents of violating Republic Act No. 3019, the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.

They also allege violations of seven environmental and land-use laws: Presidential Decree No. 1586, the Philippine Environmental Impact Statement System; Presidential Decree No. 705, the Revised Forestry Code; Republic Act No. 9147, the Wildlife Resources Conservation and Protection Act; Republic Act No. 9275, the Philippine Clean Water Act; Republic Act No. 9003, the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act; Commonwealth Act No. 141, the Public Land Act; and Presidential Decree No. 1067, the Water Code.

The complaints further cite Republic Act No. 9184, the Government Procurement Reform Act; Presidential Decree No. 1445, the Government Auditing Code; Republic Act No. 8371, the Indigenous Peoples’ Rights Act; and Republic Act No. 7160, the Local Government Code.

They likewise allege violations of Articles 171 and 172 of the Revised Penal Code on falsification of public documents, and Article 220 on the illegal use of public funds or property.

The complainants asked the Ombudsman to place the respondent officials under preventive suspension to prevent tampering of evidence and undue influence over witnesses and ongoing projects.

They also asked the Ombudsman to conduct a full criminal investigation, file cases before the Sandiganbayan, recover allegedly unlawfully disbursed public funds, and dismiss officials found liable.

Amlig called on Sen. Loren Legarda, Antique Gov. Paolo Javier, and Antique Rep. Antonio Legarda Jr. to publicly address the environmental concerns raised by affected communities.

The alliance said Sen. Legarda played a significant role in supporting infrastructure funding during her previous Senate leadership posts and urged her to comment on the projects.

It questioned what it called the continued silence of the province’s top elected officials.

The alliance framed the filings as a direct challenge to Antique’s most powerful political figures, whom it accused of turning a blind eye to environmental destruction.