Suicides trail ICI probe4 deaths in one month

By Manuel T. Ugalde

LEGAZPI CITY --- It began in Sorsogon on November 13, when an Engineer III allegedly took his own life after suffering from depression and stress linked to the ongoing probe by the Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI).

The incident was followed by another shocking case involving a senior female undersecretary, bringing the reported number of deaths connected to the probe to four within a one-month span.

Senior Undersecretary Maria Catalina Cabral reportedly plunged to her death from a 30-meter-deep cliff along Kennon Road in Baguio City on December 18. The site is linked to the controversial P250-million slope protection and rock-netting project. The ICI earlier reported the initial discovery of 482 alleged ghost flood-control projects worth billions of pesos.

Of the four reported ICI-related casualties, one involved an engineer who was ambushed in Ilocos Norte, while another case in Bicol—initially attributed to health reasons—was later alleged to have been a suicide.

Sorsogon is the home province of former Senate President Francis Escudero. Sources claim the province received billions of pesos in projects, allegedly awarded to Centerways Construction, owned by Laurence Lubiano, a Sorsogon-based associate.

President Marcos earlier named Centerways Construction among the 15 construction firms accused of being involved in anomalous, billion-peso public works projects, allegedly in connivance with corrupt officials and lawmakers.

Another disturbing development reportedly surfaced at the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Bicol regional office in Legazpi City, involving an alleged suicide initially reported as a natural death.

The incident occurred days after the first Sorsogon case. The victim was identified as an Engineer III assigned to the regional planning division and a resident of Daraga, Albay.

Sources said he had also shown signs of depression and stress while serving as project engineer for one regional project described as virtually a “ghost” project.

The first reported suicide victim was identified as Larry Reyes, 60, an Engineer III and chair of the Bids and Awards Committee of the Sorsogon First District Engineering Office. He was reportedly experiencing severe stress due to the ongoing ICI investigation.