Mamamayang Liberal party-list Rep. Leila De Lima has called out the flood-control controversy that has rocked the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), stressing that the questionable projects can be traced as far back as 2016—the first year of former president Rodrigo Duterte’s administration.
In a social media post Monday night, De Lima highlighted the chilling effect of the revelations, posting a meme that referenced Filipino Christmas icon Jose Mari Chan. “Hello to those who are cold, not because it’s the ber months, but because they found out that the anomalous flood control project started in 2016,” she wrote.
Her remarks came after contractor Cezarah “Sarah” Discaya, president of Alpha & Omega Gen. Contractor and Development Corp., admitted during a Senate Blue Ribbon Committee hearing that her company began bidding for DPWH flood-control projects in 2016. “2016 onwards,” she told Sen. Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa.
Discaya’s firm is among 15 contractors identified by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. as having cornered P100 billion worth of flood mitigation projects between July 2022 and May 2025, roughly 18 percent of the P545-billion budget.
According to her testimony, Alpha & Omega bid on 91 projects in 2022 and won 71. She also acknowledged that her family owns nine companies and that their businesses prospered after securing government contracts.
Beyond the numbers, Discaya has made headlines for showcasing her family’s fleet of luxury vehicles—including Rolls-Royce, Bentley, Mercedes-Benz, Range Rover, Cadillac Escalade, GMC, and a G63—further fueling questions on how the flood-control funds were managed.
