MANILA, Philippines — Palace Press Officer Claire Castro on Thursday said that the verification of the documents previously called the “Cabral files,” now referred to as the “Leviste Files,” is being handled by the Office of the Ombudsman.
Castro made the remark in response to Batangas Rep. Leandro Leviste’s recent allegations linking the Office of the President (OP) to P8 billion worth of Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) projects.
The Cabral files are said to be documents from the late former DPWH Undersecretary Maria Catalina Cabral, showing budget insertions allegedly connected to officials and corruption.
“The authentication of the ‘Leviste files’ is now in the hands of the Office of the Ombudsman. As Asst. Ombudsman Clavano said, documents held by others that may be edited cannot be considered conclusive evidence,” Castro said in Filipino via a Viber message to reporters.
She added, “Many versions are circulating, and they do not match… some have written annotations, some include the names of Cabinet secretaries, while other versions do not contain such details. Stories without solid evidence will remain mere speculation. Let us wait for the Office of the Ombudsman to speak on this.”
On Wednesday, Leviste posted on Facebook that 75 DPWH projects, with a total budget of P8 billion, were marked as being proposed by “OP (ES/SAP),” referring to the Executive Secretary and Special Assistant to the President.
