AN EXECUTIVE of a group of European businesses operating in the Philippines expressed confidence that authorities will get to the bottom of the alleged corruption in flood control projects.
At the sidelines of the Arangkada Philippines Investment Forum in Pasay City on Sept. 25, European Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines (ECCP) executive director Florian Gottein told reporters that members of the group are “still more in a wait-and-see position to monitor the situation.”
“But we trust in the government and the responsible government organizations to investigate and immediately act on the findings as well,” he added.
The ECCP executive said that some of the group’s members are being directly affected by the ongoing issue, mainly those engaged in the construction industry such as those “producing materials that are being used for infrastructure projects.”
“Because of some of those projects that are being put on hold, they have already experienced a reduction in sales. And it might go on for the next couple of weeks or months… They really are already experiencing it. Their sales are going down when it comes to construction materials,” he said.
The Philippines is currently being rocked by a corruption scandal involving alleged billions of pesos worth of kickbacks siphoned from flood control projects with senators, congressmen, contractors, and officials of the Public Works Department tagged.
The alleged anomalies in flood control projects triggered a probe in both Senate and the House of Representatives as well as the creation of an independent fact-finding body by President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. (GMA Integrated News)
