President Rodrigo Duterte has ordered the Department of Environment and Natural Resources to halt the acceptance of applications for reclamation activities in Manila and Cebu province, saying massive reclamation projects have become breeding grounds for corruption.
Duterte issued the directive to acting Environment Secretary Jim Sampulna as he disclosed that he had fired at least six Cabinet members because of their supposed involvement in questionable mega projects.
During a speech in Lapu-Lapu City Thursday night, the President also said he would no longer entertain or accept any new appointments.
Duterte said he could not support reclamation activities because they would benefit just the “big” companies, saying he would let his successor decide on the proposed reclamation activities.
“You know in these government’s reclamation projects, only the billionaires venture into that. Those who don’t have money or those who only use their communication skills as capital could never work because it would end in corruption because you joined the business with just small capital, eventually, you will still sell it to the big corporations. So, I said, ‘Pursue them’,” he said.
“I have plenty of work to do. A lot of people are going to Davao because I’m winding up, so to speak. A lot of people want to see me. But I won’t anymore, I won’t sign appointments, nor will I approve huge amounts of money for projects,” Duterte said.
“And then the discretion for the reclamation areas in Manila. I said it’s either I’ll suspend it for the meantime and just leave it to the next administration,” Duterte said.
However, the President refused to identify the Cabinet officials and did not elaborate on the supposed shady reclamation proposals.
“When I became President, I heard reports of corruption. So acting Environment Secretary Jim Sampulna is new because I fired them all. I won’t name anybody because it’s painful for them for this to have happened. But you know, whether you helped me during the elections or contributed something good, I am very thankful,” he said.
In 2017, Duterte sacked Interior and Local Government Secretary Ismail Sueno, citing loss of trust and confidence.
Sueno was in charge of local governments and the national police, making him among the most powerful Cabinet members. He has denied any wrongdoing in the past.
“But you know, even if we are friends, I have fired you… I’m not fond of announcing to the media about—in the process, I’ve fired five or six Cabinet members because of corruption,” he added.
“I’m not campaigning, I’m just talking about what ails the system. I’m not even naming names, but to those who are listening now, did you know about this? But if you ask me, I’ll say who are the Cabinet members that I fired. I fired them a long time ago. I’ve probably fired around six of them,” he said.
In the wake of the President’s statements, his acting spokesman Martin Andanar said there was no corruption issue against resigned Environment secretary Roy Cimatu, who he said resigned because of health issues.
When Duterte said he had directed the DENR to stop the processing of applications for reclamation activities, he was not referring to Cimatu, Andanar said.
Cimatu, a retired chief of staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, submitted his resignation to Duterte’s office on Feb. 17 due to health reasons.
Cimatu was named as DENR chief in May 2017, after the Commission on Appointments rejected the appointment of former Environment secretary Gina Lopez.
At the height of the coronavirus pandemic, Cimatu was also tapped as an overseer of the government’s intensified pandemic response strategies in Cebu City on top of his job as DENR secretary.
In an online Palace press briefing, acting deputy presidential spokesperson and Communications Undersecretary Michel Kristian Ablan said the Palace would let the legal process run its course over the alleged involvement of sacked Cabinet officials in corruption.
“If it involves DENR officials, the executive branch is following the right process,” Ablan said in Filipino. “We will follow the right procedures if there is proof of corruption. So we have to trust our institutions and we have to trust our processes.”