Opposition Senator Antonio Trillanes IV on Wednesday filed a resolution seeking to investigate Special Assistant to the President Christopher Go whose immediate family members got more than P4.5-million contracts from the government.
The senator wants the Senate committee on civil service, government reorganization and professional regulation, which he chairs, to probe the possible conflict of interest arising from government contracts obtained by the kin of government employees and officials.
But the resolution will not automatically go to his committee, as the Senate leadership still has to decide where it will be referred to it or not.
Trillanes cited a report by the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism stating that the Davao Region was given the most public works funds by the Department of Public Works and Highways in 2017, with CLTG Builders and Alfrego Builders and Supplies as the top contractors.
The PCIJ report said the two companies were owned by Go’s father and stepbrother.
In further citing the PCIJ report, the opposition senator said CLTG Builders won a total of P1.85 billion worth of infrastructure projects for Davao Region from 2007 to 2017, and another P2.7 billion in joint ventures with four contractors including Alfrego in 2017 alone.
He said CLTG Builders caught the attention of PCIJ’s research because it failed to complete all of its joint venture projects within the original deadline.
Trillanes also said CLTG also has a B license, which means that it could not carry out a big-ticket project without a partner.
“Coincidentally, CLTG is also the initials of Go whose full name is Christopher Lawrence Tesoro Go,” he said.
Trillanes said government officials were held with higher set of standards and expected at all times to put the interest of the public above their own.
“Hence, there is an urgent need to look into this matter as conflict of interest or undue influence exerted by government officials and employees in the conduct of government transactions threatens the quality of service the public is receiving,” he said.
The senator added the Senate investigation had an end view of coming up with possible remedial legislation to prevent the occurrence or recurrence of such situations in the future.