Comelec to summon 2022 poll contractors over campaign donations

Commission on Elections chairman George Erwin Garcia answers questions during a press conference at Manila Hotel’s Tent City in this file photo taken on May 16, 2025. — INQUIRER.net / NOY MORCOSO

MANILA, Philippines — The Commission on Elections (Comelec) will ask all contractors it found to have allegedly donated to the campaign of candidates in the 2022 elections to explain why they should not face an election offense, according to Comelec Chairperson George Erwin Garcia on Wednesday.

Garcia said that the Comelec has found out so far that 52 contractors donated to candidates in the 2022 elections.

Of this figure, he said that 43 contractors contributed to the campaigns of four senatorial candidates and three congressional candidates, while nine contractors donated to four gubernatorial and vice gubernatorial candidates.

READ: Comelec to gov’t contractors: Political donations are election offense

Garcia noted that the poll body submitted the list of contractors to the Department of Public Works and Highways on Tuesday to clarify if the contractors secured ties with the government.

“Pagkatapos maibigay sa amin ang certification ay susulatan na natin, ipapashow cause natin ang lahat ng contractors,” Garcia told reporters in an interview.

(After we receive the certification, we will issue show cause orders to all the contractors.)

“After naming mapashowcause ang mga contractors, ipapashowcause naman ang mga kandidato na binigyan at nakinabang sa donation o contribution,” Garcia added.

(After we issue show cause orders to the contractors, we will issue show cause orders to the candidates who received donations or contributions.)

Garcia reiterated that under the Section 95(c) of the Omnibus Election Code (OEC), government contractors are not allowed to fund campaigns of election candidates. The OEC also prohibits any person to solicit or receive any contribution from them.

Garcia added that once a contractor is proven to secure ties with the government, the contractor and the candidate may face an election offense of one to five years of imprisonment and perpetual disqualification to run for public office for the candidate.

READ: Comelec: Show cause order set vs contractor over Escudero donation

He also said that the Comelec will issue the first show cause order to Lawrence Lubiano, the president of Centerways Construction. Lubiano admitted in a hearing at the House of Representatives that his firm donated P30 million to the campaign of then-senatorial candidate Francis Escudero in 2022.

Garcia then shared that the poll body will also ask Escudero for an explanation, as he also earlier confirmed that he received the donation from Lubiano’s firm. However, Escudero clarified that he did not help the firm secure flood control projects.

This clarification came after President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. revealed that only P100 billion of the entire P545-billion budget for flood mitigation projects from July 2022 to May 2025 were awarded to 15 contractors, including Centerways Construction. /jpv