The couple, once virtually unknown, emerged in the spotlight after Sarah Discaya ran against popular Pasig City mayor Vico Sotto in the May midterm elections – only to lose by a landslide.
Her biography has since become a lightning rod for scrutiny. Born in London in 1978 to a Filipina chambermaid, her switch from a domestic worker to controlling billions of pesos in government projects has prompted searching questions about the origins of the family’s fortune.
The amount cornered by these contractors made up 20 per cent of the Philippines’ total budget for flood control since 2022. A total of 545 billion pesos had been disbursed for 9,855 flood control projects by the 15 contractors. The remaining 436 billion pesos were divided among the other 2,394 contractors.
Two of Discaya’s companies, Alpha & Omega General Contractor & Development Corp. and St. Timothy Construction Corporation, are among the 15. A total of nine construction companies are linked to Discaya and her husband, handling infrastructure projects related to flood control, roads and building construction.
