Public Works and Highways Secretary Vince Dizon on Friday maintained that the recommendation to file plunder charges against former House Speaker Martin Romualdez and resigned Ako Bicol Representative Zaldy Co was based on evidence — not hearsay.

“What we have referred to are documents and sworn testimonies that came from the Blue-Ribbon hearings. It allowed us to recommend charges both for Representatives Romualdez and Zaldy Co., and these are possible crimes of plunder, violation of the Anti-Graft and Corruption Practices Act, and direct bribery. It was based on the set of evidence that we and the ICI submitted to the Office of the Ombudsman, which includes the voluminous contracts of Sunwest Corporation and Hi-tone Construction. These two companies have alleged links to Cong. Co,” said Dizon in an ambush interview during the Pilipinas Conference Forum at The Peninsula Manila.

Sunwest Corp. allegedly cornered the P289 million flood control project in Oriental Mindoro from 2016 to 2025, in addition to the Hi-tone contracts.

Dizon said the link between Co and Romualdez was that Co was the chairperson of the Committee on Appropriations when Romualdez was House Speaker, which he described as factual.

“We also based on the testimony of former Marine Sergeant Orly Guteza at the Blue Ribbon as to pay-offs that were made to both former Speaker Martin Romualdez and Rep. Zaldy Co, which is why we recommended filing a case of direct bribery. Kasi may kapalit yun. Meaning, para makakuha ng contract ang isang contractor, meron syang ibinibigay na kickback o porsyento. At yun ang testimonya ni Guteza sa Senate. These are all based on sworn testimony and documentation that we have submitted,” he explained.

He noted that even if Guteza’s statements were previously questioned due to the alleged falsified notary, DPWH and ICI lawyers continued to submit their recommendation, emphasizing that Guteza took his oath before senators in the Blue Ribbon Committee hearings.

“That is in contrast to Zaldy Co’s Facebook video, which is not a sworn statement,” he said.

Dizon said his camp trusts the Office of the Ombudsman and its process, echoing the stance of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.

He said testimonies presented in the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee hearings showed clear links between Co and Romualdez.

“This will undergo the Ombudsman process, including investigation and case build, and the Ombudsman will subsequently decide whether complaints will be filed, although we have already given our recommendation,” he said.

Dizon reiterated Marcos’ assurance that no one will be spared in filing charges related to the flood control controversy—not relatives, friends, nor allies.

In a video message on Friday morning, Marcos announced that the Ombudsman will now take over the investigation based on evidence collected by the DPWH and ICI.

“Kaya ngayon, ay nais kong ipaalam sa ating mga kababayan na ang ICI at saka ang DPWH, lahat ng nakuha nila na impormasyon, ay ire-refer, ibibigay na sa Ombudsman para imbestigahan ng Ombudsman,” the President said, noting that the submitted materials specifically concern Romualdez and Co.

Three months of case-building

During the forum, Dizon acknowledged that filing cases against the so-called “big fish” in the flood control mess took around three months.

“Yes, but the President always says, we want to make sure that the intact evidence is there, and we want to be sure that everyone who needs to be held accountable will be held to account. And I think we are already there. And I would want to believe and I am quite confident that in the next few days, the first warrant of arrest would be issued by the Sandiganbayan,” he stressed.

Dizon compared the flood control timeline to the Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) scam linked to Janet Lim-Napoles, which took more than a year before charges were filed.

To date, Dizon said 67 individuals have been forwarded to the Ombudsman for possible complaints, excluding those added on Friday; 10 cases were filed before the Philippine Competition Commission for bid rigging worth P250 million per case; the licenses of 25 engineers and accountants involved were revoked; and 33 lookout bulletins were requested, which could lead to hold departure orders.

“And to get the money back, we already started auctioning the luxury cars of the Discayas on Thursday. And that signals the beginning of us getting back the people’s money, which is very important. Aside from that, we have frozen a total of P6.3 billion worth of assets in 1,671 bank accounts in a little over two months, 58 insurance policies, 244 motor vehicles, and 144 real properties, among others, and there’s more coming,” Dizon added.