Batangas engineer denies bribing Rep. Leviste, claims donation was instructed by Rep. Ang

Batangas 1st District Engineer Abelardo Calalo denied bribing Batangas 1st District Rep. Leandro Leviste, stating the P3.1 million was a contractor donation instructed by Uswag Ilonggo Party-list Rep. Jojo Ang for Leviste's projects.

Calalo's lawyer stated that Ang repeatedly instructed Calalo to collect donations from contractors in Batangas' 1st District to support Leviste's initiatives.

Leviste had filed corruption charges against Calalo for allegedly attempting to bribe him to halt the investigation on Batangas flood control projects.

In his counter-affidavit, Calalo emphasized he never intended to give the donation to Leviste and that Leviste was the one who first raised the topic of contractor payments and project bidding percentages.

During a meeting, Leviste asked how much could be raised if contractors contributed a percentage of project costs, with Calalo estimating that 10 percent would amount to P360 million while five percent would reach P180 million.