MANILA: The Philippines’ president vowed on Thursday that those behind bogus flood control projects will be arrested before Christmas, days after deadly back-to-back typhoons left swathes of the country underwater.
Scores of construction firm owners, government officials and lawmakers — including President Ferdinand Marcos’ cousin Congressman — have been accused of pocketing funds for substandard or so-called ghost infrastructure projects.
The Department of Finance has estimated the Philippine economy lost up to 118.5 billion pesos (around $2 billion) from 2023 to 2025 due to corruption in flood control projects.
Criminal cases against most of the people implicated were nearly completed, Marcos told reporters.
“We don’t file cases for optics. We file cases to put people in jail,” he said.
“They won’t have a merry Christmas... happy days are over.”
Marcos put the issue of ghost infrastructure projects center stage in his July national address, and public anger over the issue has since mounted.
Asked if his cousin Martin Romualdez will also face charges, Marcos said “not as yet,” citing a lack of evidence, but adding that “no one is exempted in this investigation.”
The Philippines is still reeling from the devastation caused by then Super Typhoon Fung-wong that made landfall in the country on Sunday evening, flooding hundreds of villages and killing at least 27 people.
Fung-wong came just days after Typhoon Kalmaegi hit the central part of the archipelago nation and killed at least 232 people.
Philippines vows arrests over bogus flood control projects
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Philippines vows arrests over bogus flood control projects
- Scores of construction firm owners, government officials and lawmakers — including President Ferdinand Marcos’ cousin Congressman, have been accused of pocketing funds for substandard or so-called ghost infrastructure projects
Saudi ambassador becomes first foreign envoy to meet Bangladesh’s new PM
- Tarique Rahman took oath as PM last week after landslide election win
- Ambassador Abdullah bin Abiyah also meets Bangladesh’s new FM
Dhaka: Saudi Arabia’s ambassador to Dhaka became on Sunday the first foreign envoy to meet Bangladesh’s new Prime Minister Tarique Rahman since he assumed the country’s top office.
Rahman’s Bangladesh Nationalist Party made a landslide win in the Feb. 12 election, securing an absolute majority with 209 seats in the 300-seat parliament.
The son of former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia and former President and BNP founder Ziaur Rahman, he was sworn in as the prime minister last week.
The Saudi government congratulated Rahman on the day he took the oath of office, and the Kingdom’s Ambassador Abdullah bin Abiyah was received by the premier in the Bangladesh Secretariat, where he also met Bangladesh’s new foreign minister.
“Among the ambassadors stationed in Dhaka, this is the first ambassadorial visit with Prime Minister Tarique Rahman since he assumed office,” Saleh Shibli, the prime minister’s press secretary, told Arab News.
“The ambassador conveyed greetings and best wishes to Bangladesh’s prime minister from the king and crown prince of Saudi Arabia … They discussed bilateral matters and ways to strengthen the ties among Muslim countries.”
Rahman’s administration succeeded an interim government that oversaw preparations for the next election following the 2024 student-led uprising, which toppled former leader Sheikh Hasina and ended her Awami League party’s 15-year rule.
New Cabinet members were sworn in during the same ceremony as the prime minister last week.
Foreign Minister Khalilur Rahman is a former UN official who served as Bangladesh’s national security adviser during the interim government’s term.
He received Saudi Arabia’s ambassador after the envoy’s meeting with the prime minister.
“The foreign minister expressed appreciation for the Saudi leadership’s role in promoting peace and stability in the Middle East and across the Muslim Ummah. He also conveyed gratitude for hosting a large number of Bangladeshi workers in the Kingdom and underscored the significant potential for expanding cooperation across trade, investment, energy, and other priority sectors, leveraging the geostrategic positions of both countries,” the ministry said in a statement.
“The Saudi ambassador expressed his support to the present government and his intention to work with the government to enhance the current bilateral relationship to a comprehensive relationship.”
Around 3.5 million Bangladeshis live and work in Saudi Arabia. They have been joining the Saudi labor market since 1976, when work migration to the Kingdom was established during the rule of the new prime minister’s father.
Bangladeshis are the largest expat group in the Kingdom and the largest Bangladeshi community outside Bangladesh and send home more than $5 billion in remittances every year.
