Marcos’ flood control ‘insertions’ in 2026 budget led to DPWH cut — Zaldy Co

Former Ako Bicol Rep. Elizaldy Co continued to double down on his kickback accusations against President Marcos Jr. on Tuesday, claiming that another P97 billion in alleged insertions by the Chief Executive in the 2026 budget was the key factor behind the massive cut in the funding of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).

The DPWH’s allocation for 2026 was initially set at P881.3 billion, but the House of Representatives realigned P255 billion worth of locally funded flood control projects to other programs, leaving the department with P625.7 billion. A Senate panel further reduced the DPWH’s budget to P568.56 billion, although this is not yet final as it will still be tackled in the plenary and the bicameral conference committee.

In the fifth installment of Co’s ongoing video exposé uploaded online on Tuesday, the former House committee on appropriations chairman alleged that the House refused to allow Marcos to insert another P97 billion for flood control projects in the 2026 National Expenditure Program (NEP).

The NEP is the President’s proposed budget submitted by the Department of Budget and Management to Congress for approval and serves as the basis of the General Appropriations Act once enacted.

Co claimed that he learned about the President’s alleged insertion plan from former DPWH Secretary Manuel Bonoan during a meeting at a house in South Forbes Park, which he alleged was purchased as a “drop-off and storage point for money from SOPs and collections” for Marcos.

“This was confirmed by Secretary Manny Bonoan, who said that the President has given instructions to insert another hundred billion in the President's budget,” he said in the video in Filipino.

“So when the House discovered the insertions in the 2026 budget for flood control, we returned the DPWH NEP 2026 because it was already wrong, and had another set of flood control projects,” he continued.

In late August, House Deputy Speaker Ronaldo Puno flagged the DPWH’s budget, accusing it of containing funding for flood control projects that had already been completed while ongoing and priority programs received zero allocation. Puno cited uniform amounts ranging from P73 million to P93 million — all for flood control — listed on a single page of the NEP as the most glaring example.

He questioned how these “red flags” slipped past the DBM, suggesting the agency may be complicit with the DPWH, which has been at the center of corruption allegations involving multi-billion-peso flood control projects.

This eventually led to the DPWH incurring a P255-billion budget cut in the House-approved version of the GAB.

According to Co, the P97 billion was on top of the P100 billion in projects “inserted” by Marcos in this year’s budget, 25 percent of which allegedly went straight to Marcos as a supposed cut.

Marcos has dismissed Co’s allegations as “nothing” and dared him to return to the country and say it to his face.

However, Co argued that Marcos could no longer “wash his hands” or “point fingers as if he is innocent,” claiming that he personally spoke with Malacañang officials whom Marcos allegedly instructed to negotiate with him over the P100 billion insertions.

In the first installment of his video exposé, Co said he was informed by then DBM Secretary Amenah Pangandaman about the President’s alleged intent to insert P100 billion in this year’s budget and that he could confirm it with then Presidential Legislative Liaison Office Undersecretary Adrian Bersamin.

Furthermore, Co alleged that Marcos personally spoke to him during a meeting with former Speaker Martin Romualdez, and that the President told him to refrain from meddling with his insertions.

“Based on BBM’s own words, it became clear to me that he personally instructed Secretary Menah Pangandaman and Usec. Adrian Bersamin to enter the hundred billion worth of projects,” he claimed.

“So if it really wasn’t true that the order came from the President, why didn't he immediately fire Secretary Menah Pangandaman and Undersecretary Adrian Bersamin when I informed him of the P100 billion insertion through a letter?” Co continued.

Co said he sent a “confidential” letter to Marcos in February explaining that he acted based on the President’s orders regarding the alleged budget insertions. This was allegedly followed by a March meeting arranged by Justice Undersecretary Jojo Cadiz at 1201 Aguada Street, in front of Malacañang Gate 4.

Aside from the P100 billion in insertions, Co accused Marcos and Romualdez of receiving P2 billion per month from 2022 to the present. He claimed the cash — allegedly split between the two — would be delivered by his driver and staff to the President’s and the former speaker’s residences in Forbes Park.

Romualdez has repeatedly denied wrongdoing, saying his conscience “remains clear” and that the allegations of his former ally “do not hold water in the court of law.”