Manila, Nov. 18 -- The Office of the Ombudsman (OMB) on Tuesday filed graft charges against former congressman Elizaldy Co, several officials of the Department of Public Works and Highways, and the board of directors of Sunwest Corp. in connection with a PHP289 million flood control project in Oriental Mindoro.

The cases stemmed from the complaint filed by the Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) before the OMB on Sept. 29 based on their comprehensive report on illegalities and irregularities in the procurement, construction, and implementation of projects in Region 4-B (Mimaropa).

The project in question was for the construction of a road dike along the Mag-Asawang Tubig River in Naujan, Oriental Mindoro, with a budget of PH...