Sandiganbayan drops plunder, graft cases vs Manuel Bonoan

BONOAN. Former Public Works secretary arrives at the Sandiganbayan graft court in Quezon City on June 2, 2026, for the arraignment of his graft case.

Jire Carreon/Rappler

The Office of the Ombudsman moves to junk the cases against Bonoan as part of its bid to make him a state witness in the multi-billion flood control scandal

AT A GLANCE

• The Sandiganbayan 5th Division has dropped plunder and graft cases against former DPWH secretary Manuel Bonoan, although he still faces charges in the 2nd Division.
• Bonoan is being considered as a state witness in a multi-billion flood control scandal, but his immunity is uncertain due to ongoing cases against him.
• The Ombudsman believes Bonoan's testimony could implicate former Speaker Martin Romualdez in illegal budget insertions related to the DPWH.

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MANILA, Philippines – The Sandiganbayan 5th Division dropped the plunder and graft cases against former Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) secretary Manuel Bonoan, Sandiganbayan Presiding Justice Geraldine Faith Econg confirmed to Rappler on Wednesday, September 2.

“Yes, he’s been dropped [from the cases],” Econg told Rappler in a mix of Filipino and English.

Bonoan is the Office of the Ombudsman’s latest prospect to be a state witness in the multi-billion flood control scandal. He, however, is still not off the hook yet because the 2nd Division junked the Ombudsman’s bid to drop the graft case against him in August 3.

The former DPWH chief is facing two sets of cases before the Sandiganbayan, where Senator Jinggoy Estrada is accused as well: one count of graft at the 2nd Division; then a count of plunder and graft at the 5th Division.

They were charged in May after the Ombudsman found an “intricate mechanism” involving allegedly illegal budget insertions and project allocations at the DPWH in 2025. 

Meanwhile, Bonoan will be released from detention since the 5th Division dropped the cases against him, while he’s on bail at the 2nd Division.

“I intend to avail myself of all remedies provided under our laws. This development does not end my legal recourse, and I will continue to place my trust in due process and the rule of law,” Estrada said.

However, Bonoan’s bid to become a state witness is still uncertain given the 2nd Division’s ruling. If he is given immunity, he will become the fifth state witness in the list that includes ex-DPWH officials like former undersecretary Roberto Bernardo and former district engineer Henry Alcantara.

To give immunity to state witnesses in the flood control mess, the Ombudsman and the Department of Justice’s method is to drop the witnesses as respondents from the complaints. In this way, they will not be included in the charges or cases that will be filed with the Sandiganbayan.

This was what happened to Bernardo, Alcantara, and the other witnesses.

Bonoan’s case, however, is unique because the Ombudsman moved to make him a witness only after he was arrested and charged.

In June, the Ombudsman first announced its intention to put the former DPWH chief in the list of state witnesses. The investigative body believes that Bonoan’s testimony can pin former speaker Martin Romualdez and shed light on how lawmakers allegedly inserted allocations in the national budget through the DPWH.

“The case against former Speaker Martin Romualdez is getting stronger by the day, and the reason why we accepted former DPWH Sec. Manny Bonoan as a state witness is precisely because his intention to cooperate with us is for that case specifically,” Assistant Ombudsman Mico Clavano said in June. – With a report from Sundy Locus/Rappler.com