MANILA, Philippines – Vince Dizon will be back in public service on Friday next week, February 21.
This time, he will be the secretary of the Department of Transportation (DOTr). President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. appointed him after his first transportation secretary, former Philippine Airlines president Jaime Bautista, resigned “due to health reasons.”
“Vince Dizon has been in government service for the last 26 years,” Presidential Communications Office chief Cesar Chavez said on Thursday, February 13, noting his extensive experience in the legislature and the executive.
Prior to his new appointment, Dizon, 50, was the chief regulatory officer of infrastructure developer and operator Prime Infra of ports tycoon Enrique Razon Jr., the Philippines’ second richest according to Forbes Asia. Prime Infra operates critical water and energy businesses such as Manila Water, which supplies water to over 7.7 million customers in Metro Manila’s east zone.
After graduating with degrees in economics and commerce from De La Salle University in 1996, Dizon worked as an economic researcher for the Senate of the Philippines. He would also teach in the university years later.
Dizon went on to study at the University of Reading in the United Kingdom on a Chevening scholarship, and he completed his master’s degree in applied development studies there in 1999.
He served in the Philippine Senate in other capacities upon his return. From 2002 to 2004, Dizon was the chief of staff of former senator Edgardo Angara, and nearly a decade later, he would be tapped by then-Senate majority leader Alan Peter Cayetano as a consultant from 2013 to 2016.
In between, he had a brief stint in the private sector as vice president for corporate communications for Strategic Alliance Holdings Incorporated. Dizon was also an undersecretary for political affairs under former president Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III from 2011 to 2013.
Duterte’s favorite?
Dizon played a key role in Rodrigo Duterte’s presidential campaign, thanks to his connection to Cayetano — who was Duterte’s running mate.
Dizon helped craft and organize the then-Davao mayor’s “messaging events” directed at basic sectors. Having a smaller budget compared to other presidential campaigns, their camp aimed to win the hearts of sectors such as tricycle drivers, urban poor families, and farmers.
This would pay off as months after Duterte won the presidency, he was appointed as president and chief executive officer of state-run Bases Conversion Development Authority, which is in charge of repurposing and transforming former US military bases.
Under his leadership, the BCDA earned a record P48 billion in revenues. The agency also helped in generating 400,000 employment opportunities and attracted businesses to the country’s special economic zones.
In 2019, Dizon was Duterte’s pick for presidential adviser for flagship programs and projects. The administration was then taking on a massive infrastructure program — Build, Build, Build. (READ: China-funded Kaliwa Dam to benefit from Duterte order fast-tracking water projects)
However, his contributions to the Duterte administration would span beyond legacy infrastructure projects. At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Dizon was appointed the Philippines’ testing czar after playing an active role in establishing “mega quarantine facilities” in Luzon.
He left his BCDA post a year later to focus on his role in the government’s response to the pandemic.
Dizon received the Order of Lakandula with the rank of Bayani for his contributions to the country’s infrastructure program and the country’s response to the pandemic.
As Duterte’s term was coming to a close, Dizon reportedly joined then-Manila Mayor Isko Moreno’s team in his bid for the presidency in the 2022 elections, which Marcos won.
Dizon was supposed to be Moreno’s deputy campaign manager, but decided instead to focus on the pandemic response.
Graft, malversation complaint
His time as BCDA chief did not come without controversy, however.
It was during the Duterte administration that the Philippines hosted the 30th Southeast Asian (SEA) Games. (READ: Colorful, dramatic: The highs and lows of SEA Games 2019)
In 2019, the Philippine government’s corporate counsel flagged the P11.1-billion deal that the BCDA entered into with Malaysian firm MTD Capital Berhard.
Under the joint venture, the BCDA provided the land while MTD funded the construction of the P8.5-billion New Clark City sports facilities. The BCDA has to pay back MTD in installments — but instead of paying just P8.5 billion, the government has to to shell out P11 billion.
This was the subject of the complaint filed before the Office of the Ombudsman by the Citizens Crime Watch Association, where Dizon, then-Government Corporate Counsel Elpidio Vega, and MTD director Isaac David are respondents.
According to the complainants, if a government project is a joint venture, “the private corporation is not guaranteed to earn profits.” Earning is only an option if the project was put under a build-and-transfer scheme, the complainants said.
The group also noted that BCDA was flagged by the Commission on Audit for entering into the contract without prior appropriation, which could make the proponents liable for malversation.
– Rappler.com