MANILA — Public Works and Highways Secretary Vince Dizon on Monday declared his readiness to face the National Bureau of Investigation’s (NBI) renewed investigation into alleged irregularities in the spending for the 2019 Southeast Asian Games, insisting he has nothing to hide and will fully cooperate with investigators despite the reopening of the case.
Dizon said he would honor any subpoena that may be issued by the NBI, expressing confidence that the allegations would once again fail to prosper because previous complaints had already been dismissed.
“We will cooperate because we have a clear conscience,” Dizon told reporters during an inspection of the second phase of the EDSA rehabilitation project.
Dizon served as president and chief executive officer of the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) when the sports facilities at New Clark City were constructed for the country’s hosting of the 2019 SEA Games.
He emphasized that the complaints previously filed against him and several other officials had already been dismissed in December 2021.
“Kagaya na rin ng sinabi ng Ombudsman at NBI, 2021 pa ‘yan na-dismiss. May nagkaso na diyan laban sa akin, laban sa iba’t ibang mga opisyales pero na-dismiss na ‘yan December 2021 pa. Kampante tayo dyan. Pero at the same time kung merong mga imbestigasyon kampante rin tayo, tayo ay makikipag-cooperate dyan kasi malinis ang konsensya natin at naniniwala tayo na napakaayos nung mga facilities na ‘yan at napakaayos ng pagkagawa,” Dizon said.
In a separate television interview, Dizon defended the quality of the New Clark City sports complex, describing the facilities as world-class and built according to international standards.
“Unang-una, kung titingnan mo ‘yung mga facilities sa New Clark City, napakagaganda niyan. World-class n a world-class,” he said.
He said the country lacked world-class training venues before the New Clark City complex was built, forcing many Filipino athletes to train abroad.
“Bago natin itayo ‘yan, walang world-class facility ang ating mga atleta. Walang mapag-training-ngan nang maayos. Marami sa kanila kailangan pang mag-abroad para lang makagamit ng mga facilities na maaayos at world-class. Ngayon, meron na,” he said.
Dizon also underscored the role of the Asian Development Bank (ADB), saying the multilateral institution provided technical guidance during the project’s implementation.
“‘Yan po eh ginawa natin ‘yan with the help pa of the Asian Development Bank mismo. ADB mismo ang nag-advise sa atin diyan kaya kampanteng-kampante tayo diyan. Kaya nakita naman natin, ‘yung kasong finile noong 2020, na-dismiss kaagad noong 2021,” he said.
Despite the reopening of the investigation, Dizon maintained that he welcomes further scrutiny and remains prepared to defend both the integrity of the project and the quality of the facilities.
“Ngayon kung merong mga imbestigasyon pang gustong gagawin, open na open tayo diyan kasi kampante tayo eh. At malakas ang loob nating depensahan ‘yan dahil hindi lang ‘yan above board, in-advisean ng ADB, pero ‘pag nakita mo, quality talaga. In fact, ganyan dapat ang binibigay nating mga facility sa ating mga kababayan, ‘yung dekalidad talaga,” he added.
The Office of the Ombudsman recently ordered a review of the alleged irregularities involving the construction of facilities for the 2019 SEA Games after the NBI announced a fresh investigation into the project./PN
