Jonvic: Fraternity ties won’t shield Romualdez

Shared fraternity ties will not shield former House Speaker Martin Romualdez from scrutiny as the Office of the Ombudsman considers a civil forfeiture case linked to the multibillion-peso flood control scandal, Interior and Local Government Secretary Jonvic Remulla said Monday.

Remulla said the Ombudsman, headed by his brother Jesus Crispin Remulla, is eyeing to seize Romualdez’s assets without filing criminal charges.

Speaking in an interview, the interior chief said the anti-graft office was “determined to file gross criminal neglect or gross neglect on his part for civil forfeiture of all his assets.”

“If we cannot get him criminally, then we will get his assets,” Remulla said.

Romualdez and the Remulla brothers all belong to Upsilon Sigma Phi, a fraternity at the University of the Philippines that has produced numerous political leaders. 

Remulla said fraternity ties would not interfere with the investigation. “There are times when fraternity lines are put behind in the interest of the country,” he said. “We are going all the way with this.”

The statement came amid intensifying probes into alleged corruption involving flood control projects. 

On 18 December, the Department of Public Works and Highways said it had recommended criminal and administrative charges against 87 individuals, including Romualdez, in connection with the scandal.