Who is the ‘Mrs. Patron’ being linked to Grace Poe?

The Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) has recommended that charges be filed against a certain “Mrs. Patron,” based on the testimony of a former public works official who claimed that the woman was a bagman of former senator Grace Poe.

The ICI made the recommendation on Mrs. Patron to the Office of the Ombudsman but said the evidence against Poe needs “further investigative review.” But who is Mrs. Patron?

Even the ICI’s referral letter doesn’t provide her full name, despite Rappler’s multiple requests. All the letter said is that Mrs. Patron is a contractor who supposedly allegedly collected, on behalf of Poe, a 20% kickback from resigned Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) undersecretary Roberto Bernardo. The former senator has denied Bernardo’s allegation, saying that the ICI’s recommendation for further investigation “is a clear acknowledgment that…the allegations are false and that there is no evidence to support the filing of charges against me.”

What we do know, so far, is that there is a Patron “politicontractor” family in Batangas, and they are connected to the Poes through the FPJ partylist.

San Jose, Batangas Vice Mayor Valentino “Ben” Raz Patron incorporated the construction company V.R. Patron Builders and Contractors, Incorporated in 2014. Prior to his election as vice mayor in May, Ben Patron was a three-term San Jose mayor from 2016 to 2025.

The current owners of V.R. Patron are the vice mayor’s children. Mark Lester Patron, the current company president, was the second nominee of the FPJ Panday Bayanihan Partylist. FPJ won only one seat in Congress, occupied by Grace’s son Brian.

Mark’s wife, Irene, is a company shareholder and its secretary, according to the General Information Sheet of the company filed in January 2025. She was the seventh nominee of FPJ partylist. Grace’s husband, Neil Llamanzares, was the fourth nominee.

“Prior to consideration as second nominee, we were informed of his community work including support during emergencies such as the Taal Volcano eruption. It was also clear from the start that if he were to assume public office, he would need to comply fully with all legal requirements and divest. Any further inquiries about his background are best directed to the authorities or to him directly,” Brian Poe said of Mark’s FPJ partylist nomination in a message to Rappler on Wednesday, December 10.

Part of our question to Mark was whether he divested before the May midterm elections, knowing that the Constitution prohibits members of the House of Representatives to have direct or indirect financial interest in government contracts. Rappler was able to talk to a staff of V.R. Patron on December 5, who gave us the email address we should send our questions to. Our follow-up calls on December 8, 9, and 10 were unsuccessful. We will update this story once Mark responds.

Brian told Rappler they are “cooperating with the proper authorities regarding” the question of who Mrs. Patron could be.

V.R. Patron

In the last three years under the Marcos administration, V.R. Patron won P1.42 billion worth of flood control projects, including their joint ventures. The bulk or P1.18 billion, equivalent to 82.9% of their flood control contracts in the last three years, are in Batangas.

But for all DPWH infrastructure projects in the last 10 years, or from 2016 to 2025, V.R. Patron has hauled in P12.8 billion worth of contracts, half of them in Batangas.

In December 2024, the Patron family led by patriarch Ben opened the newly built Bayante bridge in their hometown of San Jose.

There was a ribbon cutting and a big poster of the Patron family. The poster said: “With the help of Senator Grace Poe” and “through the initiative of Mayor Ben Patron.”

In truth, they were the contractor. V.R. Patron won that contract for P39.6 million, according to DPWH records.

Asked about the poster, Brian said, “Many other senators have similar posters, local officials sometimes include names or photos on their materials as a courtesy to those they believe have supported their communities.”

As a mayor from 2016 to 2025, Ben should not have held any other occupation according to the Local Government Code, although a potential justification would be that he was no longer a registered owner of the company. As a vice mayor, he should have disclosed this financial interest.

Who do you think is Mrs. Patron? Send your tips to investigative@rappler.com

– With research from Vicensa Nonato/Rappler.com

Vicensa Nonato is a Rappler intern. She is a third year journalism student at the University of the Philippines Diliman.