Senators Aquilino Pimentel III and Antonio Trillanes IV talk to reporters during the inspection of the alleged overpriced Makati Science High School Building on Saturday, Nov. 15, 2014.(MNS photo)
MANILA (Mabuhay) – After conducting an ocular inspection of the Makati Science High School building on Saturday, Senator Antonio Trillanes IV said the new classrooms were “good but ordinary” and should have cost less than what was paid.
Trillanes told reporters after the inspection that documents they received from the Makati City government indicated that each classroom is worth P24.6 million. But he said the cost for each room should have been much less.
“Sabi ko nga, kung extra ordinarily impressive ‘yung classrooms, it could justify the cost, pero based on what we saw, mas maganda siya compared sa mga ibang public high schools pero [the classrooms are] really ordinary…,” he said.
When asked if the price of the building was justified, Trillanes said: “Definitely not, nakita naman natin na even the five-star hotels won’t cost that much to build a room…”
However, he said the experts they brought with them during the inspection would give their advice at the Senate blue ribbon committee hearing on Tuesday.
For his part, Senator Koko Pimentel said that while he is satisfied with the construction of the building, there are some issues that needs to be addressed.
“Compared to the Makati Parking Building II, I’m satisfied with what I have seen, sa tingin ko – well, I am not an engineer, am a lawyer – mukha namang matibay… ‘yung staircases mukhang safe para sa mga bata,” he said.
“But there are some features like low ceiling at the dormitory room for the kids has a ceiling fan, so I pointed this out to the city administration,” he added.
The MSHS inspection is part of the ongoing probe of the Senate blue ribbon subcommittee into alleged corruption practices at the Makati City government when Vice President Jejomar Binay was the city mayor.
Among allegations of corruption hurled against VP Binay are the alleged overpricing of the Makati City Hall Building II, rigging bids and receiving kickbacks from the transactions the Makati city government entered into during his term as mayor.
The Vice President is also accused of owning a sprawling property in Rosario, Batangas and a log cabin in Tagaytay Highlands.
Binay has repeatedly denied all the accusations saying these were all part of an operation to discredit him and diminish his chances of winning in the 2016 presidential elections. (MNS)