Maria Catalina "Cathy" Cabral (1962-2025) wrote a new chapter for women in Philippine engineering. Beginning her career as a department staffer, she ascended through pure merit to the influential post of DPWH Undersecretary, where from 2014 to 2025 she shaped national planning and PPP strategy. Celebrated as a pathbreaking "model" in a male-dominated field, her legacy is one of foundational change.
From Manila Classrooms to National Blueprints: The Formative Journey of Cathy Cabral
Every monumental structure begins with a foundation—carefully laid, deliberately strong, and engineered to bear the weight of what rises above. The life of Maria Catalina "Cathy" Estamo Cabral, a future titan of Philippine infrastructure, was no different. Her story is not merely one of titles achieved, but of an intellect forged through decades of relentless scholarly pursuit, building a mind as formidable as the projects she would later oversee.
Born in Manila on May 23, 1962, her academic bedrock was formed at Holy Trinity Academy (1969-1979). Here, in the disciplined halls of her primary and secondary education, the first sketches of a meticulous professional were drawn.
Her passion found its technical language at the University of the East, where she earned a **Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering in 1984**. Securing her professional license shortly after, she entered the world of public works not just as a graduate, but as a certified builder. Yet, for Cabral, the bachelor’s degree was not an endpoint; it was the cornerstone upon which she would construct an awe-inspiring edifice of higher learning.
Driven by a vision that engineering must intersect with governance, economics, and strategy, she embarked on an academic odyssey rare in the public sector. She first fortified her managerial acumen, earning a **Master of Business Administration from Manuel L. Quezon University in 1993**. This was swiftly followed by a profound dive into advanced theory, culminating in a **Doctor of Philosophy in Business Management in 1998** and a **Doctor in Public Administration in 2001**—a dual-doctorate feat that signaled her unique blend of private-sector savvy and public-service philosophy.
But her quest for knowledge was insatiable. Understanding that national development is driven by economic currents, she acquired a Master of Economics from the Lyceum of the Philippines University in 2007. As her responsibilities grew, so did the specificity of her studies; she earned a master's degree in strategic business economics from the University of Asia and the Pacific in 2015, perfectly tailoring her expertise to the complex finance of public-private partnerships.
In her later career, Cabral foresaw the digital future. She pursued elite executive certifications at global institutions—the Wharton School, Harvard Kennedy School, and Mohamed bin Zayed University—focusing on the frontiers of **data analytics, digital transformation, and artificial intelligence. This transformed her from a traditional engineer into a future-ready executive, preparing to modernize the very fabric of Philippine infrastructure.
This unparalleled academic portfolio—spanning engineering, business, economics, public administration, and cutting-edge technology—was no mere collection of diplomas. It was the deliberate engineering of a renaissance mind, built to tackle the multidimensional challenges of national development. Before she ever chaired a meeting at the DPWH as Undersecretary, Cathy Cabral had already built her most critical project: herself. This foundation of knowledge would enable her not only to rise through the ranks but to redefine them, becoming the "model" for a new, intellectually formidable generation of public servants.
Cathy Cabral’s Ascent Redefined the DPWH
In the corridors of power and on the vast blueprints of national progress, Maria Catalina “Cathy” Cabral charted a career that was nothing short of seismic. Her story, which began in the humblest corners of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), became a living blueprint for merit, perseverance, and transformative leadership.
Cabral’s journey with the DPWH was not handed to her; it was earned, line by line, calculation by calculation. She entered the department as a Civil Engineering Aide, balancing the gritty realities of a rank-and-file, working-student position with the rigors of completing her degree. This dual role—theorist in the classroom, practitioner in the agency—forged a unique, ground-level perspective that would define her leadership.
After securing her professional engineering license, she began a steady, decades-long ascent through the department’s hierarchy. Each promotion was a testament to her competence, leading to progressively senior assignments that honed her expertise in the complex machinery of public infrastructure.
Her proven track record culminated in a landmark appointment in November 2014, when she was named Undersecretary for Planning and Public-Private Partnership. In this pivotal role, Cabral’s purview expanded to the national scale. She became the chief architect behind the country’s infrastructure planning and programming, and the key strategist overseeing the department’s critical Public-Private Partnership (PPP) initiatives—the very engine of modern Philippine development.
Her tenure’s most striking feature was its enduring stability. Retained through multiple changes in the department’s top leadership under successive DPWH Secretaries, Cabral became the institutional anchor, a constant repository of knowledge and continuity in a shifting political landscape. Her influence extended beyond the DPWH, serving as an alternate member of the Board of Directors of the National Irrigation Administration.
Cabral’s leadership reverbated across the entire engineering profession. She shattered a historic barrier by becoming the first female national president of the Philippine Institute of Civil Engineers (PICE), a watershed moment for the field. She later helmed the Road Engineering Association of the Philippines, cementing her status as a national thought leader. This academic influence was formally recognized when she was awarded the prestigious Professional Chair in Engineering Science and Technology at the University of the Philippines in 2021.
In a parallel testament to her discipline and service, she served her country in uniform as a Lieutenant Colonel in the Philippine Army Reserve Force.
Beyond the boardrooms and construction sites, Cabral’s character shone during moments of national crisis. At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in May 2020, she and her daughter, Gabe Cabral, were publicly commended by the Justice Jose Abad Santos General Hospital in Manila for a significant donation of food supplies to besieged frontline health workers—a quiet act of solidarity that revealed the compassion behind the command.
Cathy Cabral’s career was a masterclass in rising from within. She evolved from a student aide to the undersecretary who helped steer the nation’s infrastructure future, all while lifting her profession and serving her community. Her legacy is a powerful testament to where grit, intellect, and unwavering dedication can lead: from the drafting table to the director’s seat, and into the history books.
How a Powerful Undersecretary's Post-Election Phone Calls Unleashed a Political Storm
In the quiet, marbled corridors of power, where the nation’s budget is forged in a multi-trillion-peso alchemy of policy and politics, Janet Cabral was long considered a master craftsman. As Undersecretary for Planning and Public-Private Partnerships at the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), her name was whispered with respect, and her influence was a quiet constant. That was until last week, when she sat alone at a Senate witness table, not as a towering bureaucrat, but as a private citizen at the heart of the year’s most explosive scandal.
The unraveling of Cabral’s career is a story of a few fateful phone calls, a labyrinth of alleged “budget insertions,” and a kickback scheme that the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee suggests may have bled the very infrastructure meant to propel the nation forward.
The timeline, as alleged by no less than Senator Panfilo Lacson, reads like a political thriller. Shortly after the dust settled on the May 2025 elections, Cabral—still secure in her powerful post—reportedly contacted staff members of Senate Minority Leader Vicente “Tito” Sotto III. The ask was not about policy or planning. It was, according to Lacson’s privileged speech on September 7, a direct inquiry: which budget items did they want included in the proposed 2026 national budget?
This single allegation cracked open the dam. It painted a picture of a shadow process running parallel to official budgetary planning, where a key DPWH official was allegedly taking orders directly from lawmakers’ camps for their “preferred projects.”
What followed was a torrent of scrutiny. The Senate Blue Ribbon Committee, armed with testimonies from former DPWH officials, began to sketch a more sinister portrait. Cabral, they alleged, was not merely a facilitator but the central “gatekeeper.” She held, they claimed, decisive power in determining which infrastructure projects made the final cut for the budget proposal.
Former colleagues turned witnesses pointed to glaring inconsistencies in her early statements. More devastating were the allegations that this gatekeeping role served a corrupt engine: that a portion of the funds for these inserted projects was systematically diverted as kickbacks. This wasn't just about political horsetrading; it was, investigators implied, a lucrative kickback system disguised as public works.
As the heat in the hearing room became unbearable, Cabral moved. On September 14, she submitted her resignation. DPWH Secretary Vince Dizon accepted it two days later, stating the department would fully cooperate with the investigation. For a moment, it seemed the storm might pass her by.
It was a brief illusion. The Senate promptly summoned her back. This time, however, her seat was symbolically moved. No longer shielded by the title of Undersecretary, she appeared on September 30 as “Janet Cabral, private citizen.” The message was stark: resignation was not an escape. The questions from senators were sharper, the tone more accusatory. They demanded answers about the precise mechanics of the insertions, the alleged kickback pipeline, and her relationships with specific legislators.
The Unanswered Questions
The scandal leaves a web of unresolved questions that strike at the heart of governance:
Who Were the Legislators? If Cabral was taking requests, who was making them? The committee’s pursuit seems poised to move up the food chain.
Where Did the Money Go? Forensic auditors are now tracing the labyrinthine paths of billions in pesos meant for roads, bridges, and flood control.
A Systemic Failure? Is Cabral an isolated actor, or is this a glimpse into a rotten subsystem within the budget process?
Cabral has maintained her innocence through her lawyers, calling the allegations “unsubstantiated” and politically motivated. Yet, the weight of testimony and the specificity of the timeline have built a formidable case for the prosecution.
As the gavel fell on the latest hearing, the image left with the public was that of a once-powerful figure, isolated and under oath. The “master craftsman” of the budget is now the central witness in a probe that could redefine how the Philippines builds its future—and who really profits from the concrete and steel. The Blue Ribbon Committee has vowed to continue its work, promising that this is not the end, but merely the end of the beginning.