Former House Speaker Martin Romualdez is not yet linked to alleged flood control anomalies, President Ferdinand “Bongbong” R. Marcos Jr. said Thursday, noting that existing evidence against his cousin is so far confined to the Senate proceedings.

During a press briefing at Malacañan Palace, Marcos presented the first batch of case referrals by the Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) to the Office of the Ombudsman.

In his presentation, Marcos highlighted that the ICI had transmitted its first batch of referrals, implicating 37 individuals — including lawmakers, former Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) officials, and private contractors — for criminal charges such as graft, corruption, malversation, falsification, and plunder, as well as administrative violations of the code of conduct for public officers.

Among the named personalities were Senator Joel Villanueva, Senator Jinggoy Estrada, former House Appropriations Chairman Zaldy Co, former Caloocan 2nd District Representative Mitch Cajayon-Uy, COA Commissioner Mario Lipana, former DPWH Secretary Manuel Bonoan, former DPWH Undersecretaries Roberto Bernardo and Maria Catalina Cabral, DPWH personnel in Bulacan 1st DEO and Regional Office IV-B, and representatives of several private contractors.

While many DPWH officials and contractors were flagged in the investigation, few legislators were implicated — and Romualdez was not among them.

“No, they're part of the list. We'll give you the complete list,” Marcos said, noting that the full roster of 37 names will be shared in a detailed briefing.

“I just didn't go through them because there are like 37 of them. So, you'll get — as I said, you'll get a briefer which will give you more detail on all of the things that I've said today.”

When pressed on whether Romualdez is on the list, Marcos replied, “I don't think so because the only evidence that has been made against him is in the Senate. So, I don't know… No, with the Speaker, no. Not as yet. Not as yet. If something else comes out, then he might have to be answerable for something.”

Marcos emphasized that legal action would only proceed based on verifiable evidence, not political pressure.

“We don't file cases for optics. We file cases to put people in jail or to make people answer. I know that there are many, many suggestions of who else we should file cases against. Well, we're fine with that. Provide us with the evidence, and we will file cases against them,” he said.

He also encouraged the public to continue submitting complaints and documents related to irregularities, stressing that no one is shielded from scrutiny.

“Wala naman… Walang immune dito sa… Walang exempted dito sa mga imbestigasyon na ito,” he said.

At a Senate Blue Ribbon Committee hearing in September, Orly Regala Guteza — a self-proclaimed former security consultant to Ako Bicol party-list Rep. Elizaldy Co — accused several high-ranking officials, including Romualdez, of receiving suitcases filled with cash.

After the hearing, former Senate President Francis “Chiz” Escudero accused Romualdez of orchestrating a campaign to destabilize the Senate and divert attention from his alleged involvement in anomalous flood control projects. Escudero warned that Romualdez’s actions could erode public trust in democratic institutions.

Palace Press Officer Atty. Claire Castro reiterated that only solid and verifiable evidence will be entertained, stressing that the ICI will operate independently of political influence.

Meanwhile, Senator Imee Marcos claimed Wednesday that witnesses in earlier Blue Ribbon hearings on flood control corruption have begun recanting their testimonies due to threats to their safety.

Imee identified Guteza as among those withdrawing statements and said Romualdez was the “star witness” referenced by Blue Ribbon chair and Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo Lacson.

She added that Romualdez has withdrawn from testifying in Friday’s resumption of the probe, which is expected to focus on the 17 House members implicated by contractor couple Curlee and Sarah Discaya.