• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
Despite the start of campaign period for the May 12 elections next week, the House Committee on Public Accounts will continue to investigate the three mega projects of the administration of Silay City Mayor Joedith Gallego, which has secured P1.1 billion in funding from the Land Bank of the Philippines, its chairperson, Abang Lingkod partylist Representative Joseph Stephen Paduano, disclosed on Thursday.
Other major committees of the House of Representatives, including the Quad and Tri committees, aside from the committee he chairs, will do the same, even during the election campaign period, Paduano said.
The campaign period for senatorial and partylist candidates starts February 11, while the campaign period for the House of Representatives and local candidates kicks off on March 28 this year.
The P1.1 billion in mega infrastructure projects include the repair and rehabilitation of the Silay City public market and construction of the Silay City College, with a budget of P300 million each, and the construction of the New Government Center worth P500 million.
During the committee hearing on February 3, the Land Bank of the Philippines, which granted the loan, suspended the further release of funds to the project, pending the result of the investigation by the House of Representatives.
While the House committee on Public Accounts will resume a series of hearings in the last week of February, Paduano said he cannot yet determine if the Silay hearing will be calendared, considering that he has many House resolutions to tackle.
During the last hearing, a show cause order was issued by the Public Accounts committee to Silay City Mayor Joedith Gallego, for him to appear in the next hearing, following his absences in two previous hearings at the House of Representatives.
Gallego and several other Silay City officials are facing complaints before the Ombudsman.
Asked how soon the hearing will be concluded, Paduano said the Silay inquiry will be terminated after the approval of its reports by the committee and plenary, before the close of the 19th Congress on June 30.*
