By Benjamin Cuaresma
MANILA, Philippines — Malacañang has thrown down the gauntlet at former public works secretary Rogelio Singson, demanding evidence for his claim that billions of pesos under the Department of Public Works and Highways’ (DPWH) convergence and special support program (CSSP) could be used to conceal scams.
The Palace said allegations involving public funds must be backed by facts, warning that unsupported claims could mislead the public and cast doubt on legitimate government projects.
Palace press officer Claire Castro said Singson should identify the basis for his assertion that the CSSP had been used as a vehicle for irregularities.
“If we say something negative, it would be better if it is accompanied by a basis to avoid misleading our countrymen,” Castro said during a media briefing.
Singson, who served as DPWH secretary under the late President Benigno Aquino III, earlier questioned the billions allocated to the CSSP, saying the program could have been used to hide questionable projects.
He also claimed that some projects charged to the program lacked essential documentation and technical requirements, including cost estimates, specifications and technical studies.
The Palace, however, rejected the suggestion that the CSSP was some newly uncovered or secret budget mechanism.
Castro pointed out that the 2026 national budget expressly lists the CSSP among the DPWH’s regular programs.
The program is included alongside the agency’s asset preservation, network development and bridge programs.
“It is therefore inaccurate to portray CSSP as a newly discovered or previously undisclosed public works budget,” Castro said.
The clash over the CSSP comes as questions continue to swirl around questionable allocations in the DPWH budget.
Former public works secretary Manuel Bonoan earlier alleged that the 2025 budget contained so-called “leadership funds” intended for projects favored by senators.
The Palace has repeatedly denied President Marcos’ involvement in such an arrangement.
Castro previously said Marcos was unaware of the alleged “leadership funds” and would not have tolerated them.
She also maintained that no such allocation appears in the proposed 2027 DPWH budget.
While the Palace was defending the DPWH budget, transport groups were sounding the alarm over proposed cuts to major public transportation programs.
They questioned whether the government was acting as if the country had already moved beyond the threat of another fuel-price crisis.
National Confederation of Transport Workers Union secretary general Jaime Aguilar challenged the proposed reductions, particularly the cuts affecting programs intended to protect PUV operators, drivers and commuters from rising operating costs.
The proposed 2027 National Expenditure Program (NEP) would impose steep reductions on several transport initiatives, including the Public Transport Modernization Program (PTMP), Cebu Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) and the Active Transport Program.
More strikingly, the proposed budget would completely remove funding for the Service Contracting Program (SCP), which received P1 billion this year.
Funding for the EDSA busway would likewise be eliminated from the proposed budget, despite receiving P88.7 million this year.
For the second consecutive year, the Department of Transportation (DOTr) would also receive no allocation for fuel subsidies.
Aguilar said the proposed budget fails to adequately consider the possibility of fresh oil-price increases and their impact on public transportation.
The SCP provides performance-based payments to PUV operators and drivers through the DOTr to help cushion losses associated with higher fuel prices.
Under the proposed 2027 budget, PTMP funding would plunge 88 percent to just P176.8 million.
The Cebu BRT allocation would fall 60 percent to P175.5 million, while funding for the Active Transport Program would drop 68 percent to P33.9 million.
Move As One Coalition national coordinator Gybel Agregado also assailed the cuts, saying they undermine the government’s stated push to prioritize pedestrians and cyclists.
Commuters could likewise pay the price, particularly if vital infrastructure such as the EDSA busway is left without sufficient funding.
As the Palace demands proof from Singson over his CSSP allegations, the proposed 2027 budget is simultaneously drawing fire from the transport sector over what groups describe as potentially damaging cuts to public mobility programs.
ia/xf
