MANILA, Philippines — The nine construction companies owned by Sarah Discaya competed against each other in public biddings, giving them more advantage in winning public works projects.

Senate President Pro Tempore Jinggoy Estrada was able to extract this fact from Discaya on Monday during the resumption of the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee on questionable flood control projects.

Discaya’s construction companies competed against each other during biddings

The senator said this gave credence to allegations of collusion and irregularities in the awarding of Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) flood control projects.

Discaya initially denied the alleged rigging of project bids, but eventually admitted that some of her companies did participate in the same bidding process after Estrada threatened to secure records from DPWH to validate the mock biddings.

“So sometimes these nine compete with each other [during the bidding of DPWH contracts]," Estrada asked Discaya to which Sarah answered in the affirmative.

“That is not a legitimate bidding. Because those nine [firms] bidding for the same contract are owned by one person," Estrada said in Filipino and English.

Aside from Alpha and Omega General Contractor and Development Corp., Discaya and her husband own St. Timothy Construction Corp, St. Gerrard Construction and Development Corp., St. Matthew General Contractor and Development Corp., Elite General Contractor and Development Corp., Amethyst Horizon Builders and General Contractor and Development Corp., YPR General Contractor and Construction Supply Inc., Great Pacific Builders and General Contractor Inc., and Way Maker One Person Corp.

The Alpha and Omega General Contractor and Development Corp. and St. Timothy Construction Corp. are among the top 15 contractors identified by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. as having cornered the most flood control projects.

According to the citizen portal www.sumbongsapangulo.ph, which lists all supposedly completed flood control projects in the country, the nine Discaya-owned construction firms were awarded more than 400 government contracts amounting to around ₱30 billion from 2022 up to the present.

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