No drastic rise in right-of-way claims — DPWH

The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) clarified yesterday that unpaid road right-of-way (RROW) claims filed with the agency nationwide since 1997 only total some P3 billion.

Lawyer Joel Jacob, DPWH legal division chief, refuted reports that claims for RROW compensation has reached P7 billion, as contained in a resolution filed by Sen. Ramon Revilla.

Revilla, chairman of the Senate committee on public works, cited records showing that RROW claims have risen drastically the past two years.

The records purportedly show that RROW claims from 1997 to 1999 totaled less than P500 million but the total in each of the past two years had breached the billion-peso mark.

Some DPWH insiders also claimed that a syndicate is manufacturing fictitious claims, and that legitimate claims are not processed unless claimants hand over 50 percent of their claims, plus P50,000 in processing fee.

Jacob, however, insisted that figures in their possession showed that unpaid claims since 1997 only totaled about P3 billion.

He said that DPWH started paying for RROW claims only in 1997 and that the agency has only paid P223 million nationwide so far.

Jacob asserted that unpaid claims are being strictly reviewed by a task force created last August by Public Works Secretary Simeon Datumanong.

Datumanong earlier assured Revilla that only legitimate RROW claims would be processed and approved for compensation.

Jacob admitted that payment of RROW claims had been slow, but he attributed this to lack of funds.

The DPWH insiders said that of the P7 billion claims, P5.537 billion pertained to properties in Central Mindanao.

Jacob said that claims come from all over the Philippines, and that the DPWH is only one of the government offices that process RROW claims.

He pointed out that claims also pass the scrutiny and approval of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, the provincial assessor’s office, the Registry of Deeds and the Department of the Budget and Management.

Revilla said reports claimed the RROW "syndicate" is composed of the members of the above-mentioned offices, not just from the DPWH.

Datumanong said he welcomed reports seeking to bring to his attention practices of DPWH officials and employees inimical to public service and interest.

He said he would not leave any stone unturned in cleansing the DPWH, tagged in the past as one of the most graft-ridden agencies of government.

Revilla had warned that the Senate could cut DPWH’s budget for 2003 and suspend all RROW payments if the agency could not fully explain questions about the claims and unmask and charge members of the RROW syndicate. – Efren Danao