COA Commissioner Mario Lipana, Ex-Lawmaker Zaldy Co Linked to ₱1.4-B Flood Control Fund Scandal — ICI Report

The Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) revealed in its report that Commission on Audit (COA) Commissioner Mario Lipana allegedly interfered in several flood control and street lighting projects in Bulacan to benefit his own property and that of his neighbor, former congressman Zaldy Co, whose house is located near a river.

According to the ICI report, Lipana personally spoke with former Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) engineer Henry Alcantara in 2022 regarding the list of flood control projects in Bulacan.

Alcantara reportedly said he had “no personal knowledge” of how the COA official was able to secure funding or who helped him get the projects approved.

A year later, Engineer Brice Hernandez confirmed that Lipana personally went to the Bulacan District Engineering Office to follow up on the final billing for the Bustos street lighting project, even while construction was still ongoing.

In his testimony before the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee, Alcantara said Lipana managed to insert ₱500 million in funding for flood control projects under the 2023 unprogrammed appropriations, followed by ₱400 million in 2024and another ₱500 million in 2025.

The investigation also found that Lipana’s wife, Marilou Laurio Lipana, obtained ₱1.9 billion worth of government public works contracts for her company, Olympus Mining and Builders Philippines Corp., over the past three years.

Mrs. Lipana, the first nominee of the Samahan ng Maninindigang Pilipino (Vendors Party-list) — which drew controversy after naming vlogger Diwata as one of its nominees — is also said to be a partner in Le Bron Construction, one of the firms that built the ₱959-million COA building in Quezon City.

Le Bron Construction, which was blacklisted in 2017, reportedly received 235 DPWH contracts for projects across Luzon and Visayas between 2016 and 2025, totaling ₱15 billion. The couple is also believed to have mining interests through Iron Ore, Gold and Vanadium Resources Inc.

According to the ICI, Lipana’s involvement in DPWH projects in Bulacan could not be dismissed as a mere coincidence. His flood control projects were allegedly constructed to protect his and Co’s adjacent riverfront properties in Bustos.

“There’s a dike built along their property boundaries, but it seems the dike was not completed on Zaldy’s side due to a property dispute... Regardless of ownership, a dike is necessary in that area,” a Bilyonaryo source said.

The ICI recommended filing charges against Lipana and Co before the Office of the Ombudsman for direct and indirect bribery and corruption of public officials under Articles 210–212 of the Revised Penal Code; violations of Sections 3(b) and 3(c) of Republic Act 3019 (Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act); and plunder under Section 2 of R.A. 7080.

Both Lipana and Co skipped the ICI hearings on the flood control scam. Reports said Co is currently abroad for medical treatment after resigning as Ako Bicol Party-list Representative, while Lipana went on a three-month medical leave, which ended on October 31.