Chinese trader, 11 others face raps over substandard construction supplies

LAGUNA, Philippines – A Chinese businessman and 11 others are facing charges in court after substandard construction materials were found in the warehouse of a company he owns in Cabuyao last August, an official said yesterday.

There is probable cause to file charges against Louis Go, owner of South Luzon Steel Corp., and 11 others, including five Chinese, for violating the Consumer Act, according to a ruling by city prosecutor Ramonito Delfin, said Senior Superintendent Felipe Natividad, director of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) Region 4-A.

“We have an airtight case against the suspects,” a CIDG investigator told The STAR.

Natividad said the CIDG will also file human trafficking charges against the five Chinese.

Police records show that at least P40 million worth of allegedly substandard construction materials were seized at the warehouse of South Luzon Steel Corp. in Barangay Banlic. The materials, which included 18,000 deformed steel bars, were said to be for a housing program in areas devastated by Super Typhoon Yolanda in Leyte.

Natividad said the same items were also seized in Tacloban City and Cavite recently.