MANILA — President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. never authorized the creation of an alleged “leadership fund” at the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), Malacañang said, distancing the Chief Executive from claims that hundreds of millions of pesos in infrastructure allocations were earmarked for individual lawmakers.
Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said Marcos personally denied discussing or approving such an arrangement with former Public Works Secretary Manuel Bonoan.
“Sinabi po niya na wala talaga itong pinag-usapan,” Castro said.
The denial came after Bonoan, in his testimony and affidavit, alleged that a “leadership fund” was established in 2024 supposedly to shield priority infrastructure projects from budget reductions arising from congressional insertions.
Under Bonoan’s account, lawmakers allegedly received project allocations of at least P500 million each, while party-list representatives were supposedly allotted P150 million.
Castro said Marcos’ discussions with Bonoan instead centered on identifying and prioritizing infrastructure projects according to the needs of communities, not on allocating funds to individual lawmakers.
“Ang pondo ibinibigay sa proyekto, hindi sa tao,” she said.
According to Castro, Marcos instructed Bonoan to ensure that infrastructure projects were properly selected and distributed based on local requirements.
She stressed that the purported “leadership fund” was never included in the approved national budget or the General Appropriations Act.
Malacañang also checked with the Department of Budget and Management, while members of the administration’s economic team reportedly denied any knowledge of such an arrangement.
“Kung mayroon man silang pag-uusap among themselves dito sa DPWH, hindi po ito kailanman naging programa ng Pangulo,” Castro said.
She said Marcos’ instruction to Bonoan was simply to ensure that the DPWH properly performed its mandate.
“Ang gusto niyang sabihin kay Secretary Manny Bonoan, ‘ayusin mo ang trabaho,” she said.
Castro also rejected suggestions that Marcos may have been unaware of irregular activities allegedly committed by officials under his administration.
She said the President immediately ordered an investigation after reports of anomalies within the DPWH surfaced.
“Dahil mali na iyong report ni Secretary Manny Bonoan, ang ginawa agad ng Pangulo, nagpa-imbestiga,” Castro said.
Castro maintained that Marcos does not tolerate irregularities and wants those found responsible held accountable./PN
