Zaldy Co tags Liza Marcos, brother in onion, rice smuggling

Fugitive former lawmaker Elizaldy Co leveled another series of accusations against the administration on Wednesday, this time linking First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos to alleged agricultural smuggling that reportedly caused rice and onion prices to soar to as high as P60 and P600 per kilo, respectively.

Co released the sixth installment of his video exposé, explicitly accusing Araneta-Marcos of interfering in the internal affairs of the House of Representatives by allegedly ordering then Speaker Martin Romualdez to freeze an inquiry into onion smuggling and cartel operations in early 2023.

The alleged intervention, Co claimed, was due to the supposed involvement of Martin Araneta, the First Lady’s brother, in price manipulation schemes that pushed onion prices to record highs.

“The Speaker said he was called by First Lady Liza Marcos and asked him to stop the investigation,” Co said in Filipino. “That’s why it didn’t push through, and no one was punished [because] apparently, the importation of onions is controlled by the First Lady’s brother.”

“Painful as it may be to accept, but this is the reality: The most powerful family is directly involved in this system. From the President and the First Lady down to their children. They set the rules, control, and profit from transactions that are supposedly for the public good,” he added.

Co was referring to the motu proprio inquiry initiated by a House panel during the previous Congress following a sharp spike in onion prices in the latter part of 2022, when red onions sold for P500 to P600 per kilo.

Alleged artificial spike in prices

The surge was initially attributed to supply shortages, but a House probe later found that cartels, hoarders and smuggling activities had artificially inflated prices.

Broadcast journalist Ramon Tulfo had earlier alleged that Araneta was in cahoots with Michael Ma, president of China-Philippine United Enterprises, to control onion supply—an accusation the First Lady categorically denied last year.

Co, however, claimed that the Araneta family’s alleged involvement extended beyond onions to include rice price manipulation.

In late 2024, the House launched an investigation into the surge in rice prices, which climbed to as much as P60 per kilo, but Co said the probe was later suspended.

According to Co, the inquiry was halted upon the alleged request of Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr., who supposedly received a “confidential report” implicating the First Lady.

“It states there that First Lady Liza Marcos controls the rice importers. According to Secretary Laurel, the First Lady would be affected if the investigation proceeds,” Co claimed.

He further alleged that Ilocos Norte Rep. Sandro Marcos, the President’s eldest son, also called Romualdez to stop the investigation “as instructed” by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.

“That’s when we realized that even after lowering the import tax on rice from 35 to 15 percent, prices in the market still haven’t dropped. This is because of the numerous SOPs and remittances required in every transaction,” Co said.

Poll funds alleged to come from SOPs

Co further alleged that billions of pesos in SOPs—or standard operating procedures—derived from the Bureau of Customs and sugar firms were used to bankroll campaigns of administration-backed candidates in the 2025 midterm elections.

Rice prices have remained high despite excess supply, declining global prices, and the implementation of Executive Order No. 62 in July 2024, which lowered rice import tariffs from 35 percent to 15 percent.

In February, the Department of Agriculture declared a food security emergency, allowing the release of buffer stocks at subsidized prices—such as P20 per kilo in Cebu.

Latest DA price monitoring showed imported premium rice retailing at P58.35 per kilo, while local premium rice stood at P56.92 per kilo—still far from the President’s P20-per-kilo target.

Earlier, Co accused Marcos of orchestrating P100 billion in budget insertions, claiming that 25 percent allegedly went directly to the President. He also alleged that Romualdez funneled more than P50 billion in infrastructure projects since 2023—claims that have been denied.

Meanwhile, Co’s legal counsel Ruy Rondain denied President Marcos’ claim that Co’s camp attempted to “blackmail” the administration by offering to stop publishing videos in exchange for keeping Co’s passport.

Rondain said the allegation was “completely untrue,” stressing that he has “not spoken with anyone from the government to negotiate.”

“As I have always maintained, I have no control over the release of the videos,” he said.

Co left the Philippines in July and has remained abroad despite an arrest warrant issued by the Sandiganbayan over a P289.5-million flood control project in Oriental Mindoro, which was declared “grossly substandard.”

The project was awarded to Sunwest Inc., an Albay-based construction firm reportedly owned by Co.