THE separate investigations by the House of Representatives and the Senate into ghost and substandard flood control projects — now expanded by the Independent Commission on Infrastructure to cover all projects built from 2016 to 2025 — have stalled some infrastructure projects under the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) that still need additional funding, albeit temporarily.

Among the projects that seem to have already been caught in the crossfire is the long-awaited bridge across the Calmay River in Dagupan City.

The bridge, designed to connect the downtown area of the city to its western part, all the way to the town of Binmaley, was envisioned as a vital artery that would ease mobility, stimulate trade, and uplift communities long left in isolation.

Phase one of the project, worth more than ₱400 million, has already been completed. However, the second phase, which requires an additional amount of more than P400 million, may have been temporarily frozen following DPWH Secretary Vince Dizon’s directive, pending the outcome of the flood control corruption probe. The entire project was originally divided into three phases, with the expectation that it would be completed before President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. steps down in 2028.

For Dagupan, the bridge symbolizes a long-overdue reconnection among people of the same city. History reminds us that an earlier bridge—the Franklin Bridge, which linked downtown Dagupan to the old barrios of Calmay and Carael across the Calmay River—was swept away by a flood in 1932, cutting off residents from the rest of the city. More than 90 years later, hopes for a modern replacement have once again been dashed, not by natural disaster, but by man-made corruption.

The scandal now unfolding in Congress is being described as potentially the biggest in Philippine history, eclipsing even the Napoles pork barrel scam. Lawmakers and DPWH officials have been implicated in pocketing 20 to 30 percent kickbacks from contractors in exchange for projects — many of them ghost or substandard. Some cases have already reached the Ombudsman, but the process will take time, and justice has yet to be seen.

The tragedy of the Calmay Bridge is not simply about suspended funding for the other phases of the project. It is about how systemic greed has once again robbed Filipinos not just of their taxes, but of opportunities, dignity, and progress.

Every day that the bridge remains unbuilt is a reminder that corruption does not merely steal money — it steals future.

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