On September 2, 2025, the leadership of the Department of Public Works and Highways was officially turned over to Vince Dizon, succeeding Manuel Bonoan. And today, Dizon has handed the reins of the Department of Transportation (DOTr) to Giovanni ‘Banoy’ Lopez, a member of the department since 2017.
As acting secretary of the DOTr, Lopez is expected to stay the course set by Dizon, implementing commuter-first projects and cracking down on unsafe motoring. Having previously served as undersecretary for administration, finance, and procurement, Lopez strongly advocates against corruption and promises to be a present and actionable leader for the department and its stakeholders.
A lawyer and certified public accountant, Lopez also served as the department’s director for legal services. After his directorship, he was named as assistant secretary for procurement and project implementation. That then led him to be chief of staff for former DOTr secretary Arthur Tugade and undersecretary under Dizon’s tenure. Lopez holds a bachelor’s degree in Accountancy from St. Paul University in Tuguegarao and a juris doctorate from the San Beda College of Law.
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Meanwhile, Dizon will be overhauling the DPWH, as the department is currently answering for many failed and nonexistent flood control projects. These were brought to light after recent flooding ravaged several parts of the Philippines last July.
The new secretary has asked for the courtesy resignations of all department officials, while announcing that private contractors involved in ghost projects and subpar infrastructure construction will be blacklisted. Dizon has also scrapped the department’s internal anti-corruption task force to uproot any underlying corrupt practices.
