Former senator Antonio Trillanes IV said he is preparing a legal complaint to be filed in January 2026 questioning the scale of public works spending tied to the congressional district of Davao City Representative Paolo “Pulong” Duterte.
Speaking on Bilyonaryo News Channel’s program Agenda, Trillanes raised concerns over what he described as an unusually large concentration of Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) projects linked to the district, estimating the total value at around ₱51 billion. He questioned why the allocations had not drawn scrutiny from state investigators or infrastructure monitoring bodies.
“Yes, sa January natin ipa-file ito. So pinapaspasan na namin ito, marami kasi ito eh. At ito, ang very clear dito, kinumpirma mismo ni Paolo Duterte na meron siyang at least 49 billion. Sinabi niya 49 billion daw ito, completed daw ito lahat. Ngayon, titingnan natin,” Trillanes said.
He also expressed doubt over the absence of visible inspections or inquiries by oversight agencies, pointing to what he described as a lack of activity by enforcement and security institutions in the area. “Alam n’yo, itong DPWH, ‘yung mga inspektor ng ICI, ang dami, pati PNP, AFP, wala man lang sumilip du’n sa distrito ni Pulong Duterte. ‘Yun ‘yung mahiwaga dito,” he added.
The former senator linked his claims to earlier statements attributed to the late DPWH Undersecretary Maria Catalina Cabral, who had alleged the presence of budget insertions in infrastructure programs between 2020 and 2022. When asked why those figures had not triggered a formal probe, Trillanes said, “It’s either takot or kakampi nila.”
Duterte, for his part, has said the projects implemented in Davao City during the period in question were “fully accounted for” and had received official certification as completed.
