EU envoys junk Co bandwagon: Marcos clueless

European diplomats are not playing along with the Palace’s wild goose chase after fugitive former Ako Bicol Partylist Representative Zaldy Co, on the heels of the failure of a high-level delegation led by Justice Secretary Fredderick Vida to bring Co back.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. failed to obtain information from the Czech Republic’s Chargé d’Affaires, Eva Tenzin, and the French Ambassador, Marie Fontanel, on Co’s whereabouts after the government lost track of him in Prague.

Palace press officer Undersecretary Claire Castro indicated on Thursday that Co had been detained, as relayed to President Marcos by Tenzin during their meeting in Malacañang on Wednesday.

The Palace insisted the government was not concealing information on the current status of Co, stressing that the authorities have been transparent but are constrained by what the foreign governments can disclose under their laws.

In a briefing, Castro said the clarification followed the President’s meeting with Fontanel and Tenzin where the President asked them about Co’s reported detention and transfer.

According to Castro, Fontanel said French officials were aware of Co’s status as a fugitive but emphasized that she was not authorized to release further details about him.

Tenzin, meanwhile, would only confirm that Czech authorities had detained Co for having invalid travel documents.

She also declined to provide additional information, citing restrictions under international, European, and domestic laws.

Castro said the President sought further details from the Czech side, including an update on Co’s detention and movements, but these were not disclosed.

Beyond the confirmation of detention, Castro said no additional information was provided.

She said the Czech government also cited its legal limitations, particularly in cases involving asylum.

The Palace maintained that the lack of information should not be interpreted as secrecy but rather as compliance with foreign legal processes and the discretion of those jurisdictions handling the case.

Correct in a way

“Mr. President, you are correct in your information that Czech authorities detained Zaldy Co due to invalid travel documents,” Tenzin told Marcos, as related by Castro.

Castro said the President made known his dismay over the Czech authorities’ release of Co whom they had in their custody.

The reconstructed sequence of Co’s journey, based on government statements, showed that Co left the Philippines in mid-2025.

The government canceled his regular and diplomatic passports in December 2025 following charges filed against him in the Sandiganbayan anti-graft court for graft and malversation in a flood control project.

He, however, retained or accessed an older expired Philippine passport (expiration date 11 September 2022) that still carried a valid Schengen visa.

Persistent but unconfirmed reports, strongly pushed by Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla and others, claimed that Co had secured a Portuguese “golden visa” (residency via a 500,000-euro investment), which could lead to Portuguese citizenship and a passport after several years.

No Co, no go

A Portuguese embassy source in Prague later stated there was no record of “Elizaldy Co” in their citizens’ registry, leaving the exact status of a second passport murky. What is clear is that Co had layered travel options that reduced a reliance on his Filipino documents.

Co reportedly traveled through multiple countries (including the US, France, Spain, Portugal, and others) before settling into the mobility offered by a Schengen visa. Some officials believed he had used Portugal as a base or transit point.

Since the Schengen Area functions as a single territory with no routine internal border controls between member states (including the Czech Republic, Germany, France etc.), once inside, movement by car, train, or plane is largely unimpeded.

Data privacy rules and varying national implementations further complicated real-time tracking.

President Marcos announced on 16 April that Co had been “caught” in Prague. Vida’s high-level delegation rushed to the Czech Republic, only to learn that Co was no longer in custody.

Czech authorities reportedly allowed him to leave or failed to hold him pending proper extradition processes.

He then moved freely within the Schengen zone, likely by land, as later indicated by vehicle registry traces cited by Vida.

Asylum in France

Malacañang then said that Co was seeking political asylum in France, claiming persecution. This legal maneuver invokes non-refoulement protections and can stall deportation for months or years.

His detention in Prague was likely for lack of travel documents, not for the service of an Interpol Red Notice for serious crimes.

In explosive video statements in late 2025, Co directly implicated President Marcos and his cousin, former speaker Martin Romualdez, in roughly P100 billion in alleged kickbacks from dubious flood control projects.

Marcos and Romualdez denied the allegations.

Bound by int’l protocol

“President Marcos was still seeking further statements or information from the Czech Republic. However, the request was not granted, as the Czech Republic is bound by international law, as well as European and national laws,” Tenzin said.

She added that even if assistance was requested directly from the Czech government, it could not be provided.

Even when the huge Vida contingent went to the Czech Republic, no additional information was given. “Their only response was that they would cooperate in accordance with their laws,” Castro said.

Castro stressed that despite the very limited information, the Philippines’ diplomatic relations with the Czech and French governments remained intact and strong.

Regarding the Red notice pending with the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol), headquartered in France, Castro said it was not discussed during the meeting.

“It was not discussed. The President did not make any request to France regarding the red notice. His only request was that they provide more information, and he informed them of the status of Co in relation to the case he is facing here,” she said.

A red notice, which serves as a global alert for law enforcement to detain Co for extradition, is vital to the Philippine authorities for locating and arresting him to face the graft and malversation charges at home.

Moreover, Castro said the President, during the meeting, assured the envoys the Philippines would use all legal and diplomatic means possible to bring Co back to face the charges.