Co-nfessions: Zaldy Co points fingers at Marcos Jr., Romualdez

Former Ako-Bicol party-list representative and former House Appropriations Committee chair Zaldy Co has broken his months-long silence, releasing a series of videos that thrust President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. and Leyte 1st District Rep. and former House Speaker Martin Romualdez into the spotlight amid a brewing controversy over budget irregularities and flood control corruption scandal.

WHO IS ZALDY CO?

• Elizaldy “Zaldy” Salcedo Co is a former Ako Bicol party‑list representative who served as Chair of the House Committee on Appropriations from July 2022 until January 13, 2025.

• As appropriations chair, he exercised the “power of the purse,” controlling the allocation of funds in the controversial 2025 national budget.

• He owns Sunwest Construction, a major government contractor with projects in roads, flood control, river dredging, and DepEd laptop programs. It is also linked to the Pharmally scandal during the pandemic, in the Duterte administration. 

• Although officially divested in 2019, records indicate he remains a beneficial owner through related companies.

• From 2016 to 2025, under the administrations of Duterte and Marcos, Sunwest won major flood-control and infrastructure contracts exceeding P86 billion, with individual projects ranging from hundreds of millions to several billion pesos; some were reportedly linked to substandard materials and alleged commission demands of 20–25%.

• The series of videos in which Co made his allegations was released just days before the Iglesia ni Cristo (INC) three‑day “Rally for Transparency,” scheduled on November 16–18, 2025, which calls for accountability over flood control projects and other government corruption issues.

PART 1

The first part of Co’s statements, posted Friday, November 14, states the following:

• Budget and Management Secretary Amenah Pangandaman called him in late 2024, right when the bicameral conference committee (bicam) process was starting, to tell him President Marcos had ordered “P100 billion worth of projects” to be inserted into the budget. 

• He confirmed the order with Undersecretary Adrian Bersamin of the Presidential Legislative Liaison Office, who told him the President had indeed given that instruction. 

• Co claims he phoned former House Speaker Martin Romualdez to relay Marcos’ directive. According to him, Romualdez replied: “What the president wants, he gets.” 

• He claims a meeting was held at a building close to Malacañang (the Aguado building) with Pangandaman, Bersamin, Romualdez, and the Department of Justice (DOJ) Undersecretary Jojo Cadiz. 

• In that meeting, Bersamin allegedly handed Co a list of projects worth P100 billion, which Co says “came directly from Marcos,” packaged in a brown leather bag. 

• Co tied the “brown leather bag” to a previous incident: He recalled a 2022 Singapore trip (after the elections) with Marcos and Romualdez, where the Presidential Security Group (PSG) was told to ensure a similar bag was not left behind: “Maiwan na ang lahat ‘wag lang ang brown leather bag.”

• When Co raised concerns that putting the full P100 billion into the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) would make its budget exceed the Department of Education’s, Pangandaman and company allegedly instructed him to instead allocate P50 billion to program funds and the remaining P50 billion to “Unprogrammed Funds,” which he says falls under the Office of the President. 

• The next day, Co says Pangandaman relayed another message from Marcos: that Romualdez had promised the P100 billion, and it “cannot be changed.” 

• Co claims he was told to stay outside the country. He left on July 19, 2025 for a medical checkup, planned to return after Marcos’ State of the Nation Address (SONA). But on the day he was supposed to fly back, Romualdez allegedly called and told him it was safer to remain abroad, saying he would be “taken care of as instructed by the President.” 

• He now believes “taken care of” meant being used as a scapegoat, saying he was made the “poster boy” for the administration’s fight against corruption. 

• Co vows to reveal “all the truth,” claiming he has receipts, evidence, and names of those involved. 

• As for the proposed project list, Co’s office reportedly mapped out P81.08 billion in infrastructure projects (mainly public works) and P18.76 billion in other programs, including funds for the 2026 Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit. He also posted it on social media.

• Co argues that Marcos’ public denials about such insertions conflict with the process he described. According to Co, the budget department usually forwards insertion proposals to Marcos for approval, making denials hard to reconcile. 

• He also expresses fear for his life, claiming that the administration is “using all the country’s resources” to pressure him into silence, and threatening that he could be eliminated if he speaks out.

PART 2

In the second part of his confessions, posted Saturday, November 15:

• Co claims that President Marcos allegedly received P25 billion in kickbacks, equivalent to 25% of the P100 billion budget insertions he alleges were ordered.

• He says he asked the DPWH how much in ‘SOP’ (standard operating procedure), a slang term for kickback or bribe,was expected to go to the Office of the President; the answer he claims he received was 25%.

• He presented photographs of luggage lined up between luxury vehicles, allegedly for delivery to Marcos and former Speaker Romualdez.

• He insists: “Walang pera na napunta sa akin; lahat ng insertion ay napunta sa ating Pangulo at Speaker Martin Romualdez.”

• Deliveries allegedly occurred between January 8, 2024 to March 11, 2025, with one delivery showing 37 pieces of luggage amounting to P1 billion.

• Drop-off locations reportedly included Marcos’ and Romualdez’ homes in North and South Forbes Park, and Malacañang, as earlier narrated by Co’s former security aide, Orly Guteza in Senate Blue Ribbon Committee Hearings.

• He challenges the Ombudsman and Senate to investigate, but noted procedural hurdles if he submits his claims abroad.

• Co alleges the kickbacks were part of a wider scheme benefiting Marcos and Romualdez personally through national budget insertions.

PART 3

Co posted the third installment of his videotaped confessions on Sunday, November 16.

• Co now claims P56 billion in kickbacks from flood control projects went to President Marcos and Martin Romualdez.

• He disputes earlier reports (e.g. by ICI) that he only “pocketed” P21 billion, insisting the real amount is much higher.

• Co reiterates that all the money just passed through him and that none stayed in his hands; he insists he merely delivered it and was simply following orders.

• He alleges Romualdez threatened him in March 2025, the former speaker supposedly said he would “shoot me if I will talk.”

• Co said Romualdez warned him by phone that returning to the Philippines could be dangerous, suggesting threats to his life.

PALACE PUSHES BACK, DENIES ALLEGATIONS

• The Presidential Communications Office (PCO), via Acting Secretary Dave Gomez, called Co’s accusations “pure hearsay.” 

• Gomez said Co’s claims are “without basis and fact,” and challenged him to return to the Philippines to testify under oath. 

• According to the Palace, President Marcos had already exposed irregularities in flood control projects and has taken steps to investigate and hold accountable those responsible. 

• Budget Secretary Amenah Pangandaman denied Co’s version of events, arguing that “presidential insertions” would normally happen during the drafting of the National Expenditure Program (NEP), not during the bicameral conference. 

• The Palace’s press office, through Claire Castro, accused Co of making up “false narratives” to divert attention from his own legal issues suggesting he was name-dropping powerful figures to evade accountability. 

• Former House Speaker Romualdez declined to comment on Co’s allegations, saying they were not made under oath and have no legal standing.

WAIT, WHAT COULD 100 BILLION BUY?

• Around 50,000 decent houses (~P2M each), enough for half a million families.

• Fully funded 10 million public school students for a year (~P10,000 per student).

• Construct roughly 40,000 public school classrooms (~P2.5M per classroom).

• Purchase of about 2 billion kilos of rice (~P50/kg), enough to feed the entire country for months. 

CO IN THE CROSSCHAIRS

• The Sandiganbayan has issued arrest warrants against Zaldy Co and 17 others in connection with  the alleged flood-control corruption case on November 18. 

• Following the order, the Philippine National Police (PNP) and the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) have called on Co to surrender and promised lawful execution of the warrants.

• The Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Jonvic Remulla has given Co a deadline until November 24, Monday, to surrender, warning that evasion could label him a fugitive.

• Meanwhile, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said it  has yet received a court order to cancel Co’s passport as of this writing.

Article: John David Parol

Graphics: Jan Mike Cabangin, Kent Bicol, Rhada Amarila, and Jannine Lagbawan