TINULIGSA ni Palace Press Officer Claire Castro si Baguio City Mayor Benjamin Magalong sa umano’y pagbaluktot ng katotohanan at pagpapalaganap ng intriga kaugnay ng kanyang pagbibitiw bilang special adviser sa Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI).

Iginiit ni Castro na walang pumilit sa alkalde na magbitiw matapos ang umano’y hindi niya pagsisiwalat na may kaugnayan ang isang kompanya ng pamilya Discaya sa P110 milyong tennis court at parking building project sa Baguio.

“Huwag po niyang (Magalong) bigyan ng intriga na mayroong nag-utos sa akin na ibang tao. Kaya nga sabi natin, iwasan ang kuwentong walang ebidensiya,” ani Castro na undersecretary ng Presidential Communications Office (PCO).

“Kung sinuman iyong sinasabi niyang iyon, kung may alam siya kung sino ang nag-utos sa akin at hindi ang Pangulo sa mga sinabi ko noong September 26, ipalitaw niya po dahil alam kong wala siyang mapapalitaw dahil iyon ay walang katotohanan,” dagdag ni Castro.

Nauna nang nilinaw ni Magalong na ang P110 milyong proyekto na iginawad sa St. Gerrard Construction Company, isang kompanyang pag-aari ng pamilya Discaya, noong 2022 “was completed in full compliance with the law.”

Ayon kay Castro, hindi totoo ang paulit-ulit na pahiwatig ni Magalong na ang kanyang mga pahayag ay iniutos ng ibang tao maliban kay Pangulong Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.

“Sana po ay napanood niya ng buo iyong ating press briefing. Pero ito pong isyu na ito ay paulit-ulit na at nasagot ko na po, pero hindi ko alam bakit paulit-ulit pa rin at parang hindi po nagkakaroon ng katapusan ang isyu na ito,” ani Castro.

Nilinaw niya na kusang-loob ang pagbibitiw ni Magalong at hindi siya pinilit.

“Unang-una po, hindi ko po saklaw ang kaniyang damdamin. Siya po ang boluntaryong nag-resign, hindi naman po siya pinagre-resign. Kung iyon po ang kaniyang naging desisyon, hindi ko rin po saklaw ang kaniyang pagdedesisyon,” sinabi ni Castro.

Samantala, sinabi ni Bicol Saro Party-list Rep. Terry Ridon, ang House Infrastructure Committee overall chairman, na nabigong i-disclose ni Magalong ang kaugnayan ng kompanya ng Discaya sa proyekto sa Baguio, at inamin na ang lungsod ay nakipagtransaksyon lamang sa isang subcontractor―isang setup na paulit-ulit na tinutuligsa sa Kongreso.

“Baguio City Mayor Benjamin Magalong has only himself to blame for his current woes in the Independent Commission for Infrastructure,” pahayag ni Ridon.

“It is the height of hypocrisy for a public official who styles himself as a champion of transparency, accountability and good governance to reject public scrutiny of projects within his own local government,” sinabi ni Ridon.

Binigyang-diin ni Ridon na hindi maliit na isyu ang pagsusuri sa P110 milyong proyekto ng tennis court sa Baguio dahil direktang sangkot dito ang pamilya Discaya, na nasa sentro ng mga kontrobersiya sa flood control projects.

“The reason for scrutiny of a particular project is not marginal―it is highly relevant, as it involves one of the central personalities in flood control corruption: the Discayas and one of their key firms,” wika ni Ridon.

“This directly tests Mayor Magalong’s integrity and commitment to transparency, as he himself, as the city’s Head of Procuring Entity, has engaged a contractor linked to ghost and substandard projects,” dagdag niya.

Binanggit din ni Ridon na inamin mismo ni Magalong na ang lungsod ay nakipagtransaksyon lamang sa isang subcontractor.

“Mayor Magalong even admitted today that the city had only been dealing with a subcontractor―precisely the type of anomalous arrangement being flagged in both House and Senate panels as indicative of substandard and questionable projects,” ani Ridon.

Nilinaw ng mambabatas na walang ebidensiya ng korapsiyon o kickback sa proyekto, ngunit may sapat na batayan ang publiko upang magtanong.

“To be clear, there is no allegation at this point that the P110-million Baguio City tennis court project is tainted with corruption, or that city officials received kickbacks from the Discayas,” sinabi ni Ridon.

“There is, however, a legitimate allegation that the project may be substandard―giving the public every reason to ask questions. And more importantly, even the loudest champions of good governance should never reject scrutiny of their own projects,” aniya pa.

Ayon kay Ridon, ang pinakamatinding tanong ay ang pananahimik ni Magalong sa kaugnayan ng Discaya sa proyekto, sa kabila ng mga naunang pagsisiwalat.

“The first news report on the tennis court project came out on 20 September 2025. Yet as early as 11 August 2025, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. had publicly disclosed the involvement of the Discayas and other flood control contractors. On 2 September 2025, the Discayas themselves admitted control over multiple contracting firms, including St. Gerrard Construction,” pahayag ni Ridon.

“For more than a month―from the President’s disclosure until the news article’s publication―Mayor Magalong said nothing about this project, all while continuing to speak publicly against corruption,” dagdag niya.

“This failure to disclose and his continuing rejection of scrutiny do not speak well of his actual commitment to transparency, accountability and good governance―particularly when it comes to his own affairs,” giit pa ni Ridon.