“We see what is currently happening. There has been selective prosecution and selective accountability based on if you are an ally or an opponent of the administration.”

That was the statement that ACT Teachers Partylist Rep. Antonio Tinio said with respect to the ongoing investigations into the multibillion peso flood control scandal, nearly one year after President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. exposed the issue through his previous State of the Nation Address (SONA).

Tinio stressed that even with the time that has passed, several individuals involved in the corruption scheme have remained untouched, particularly those principally involved in the misuse of billions of funds intended for infrastructure projects under the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).

“Malacanang could say that there have been individuals imprisoned–one former senator, two sitting senators–but for the public, that is not enough. Yes, the detained officials have liability but the public knows that they are not the most responsible in the flood control corruption,” he said.

“The most important question now is what if the biggest fish is President Bongbong Marcos himself?” he posited.

The individuals that the solon referenced were former senator Ramon “Bong” Revilla, Senator Jinggoy Estrada, and Senator Rodante Marcoleta who are all currently held under the custody of the Quezon City Jail - Male Dormitory.

Revilla and Estrada are convicted over separate cases of graft and other charges linked to alleged kickbacks related to infrastructure projects while Marcoleta was recently detained over undisclosed campaign donations he received in 2025.

Even with the cases, however, Tinio noted that the public still viewed the developments as “selective” given the fact that both sitting senators arrested were those that opposed and critiqued the current administration through the Senate.

“His allies are the most responsible. Former leaders of the House and the Senate, Cong. Martin Romualdez and Sen. Chiz Escudero, and cabinet members should be the primary people held to account. With the president at the helm, they are the ones most guilty,” he said.

“But they were not charged because firstly, Marcos must protect his allies, and, secondly, because he needs to protect himself,” he added.

For Tinio, the other notable figures implicated in the mess that remain uninvestigated were dismissed Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin and the supposed bagman of the President in former Presidential Legislative Liaison Office (PLLO) chief Adrian Bersamin.

The lawmaker also pointed out that some officials in former Department of Budget and Management (DBM) Secretary Amenah Pangandaman and former DPWH Secretary Manuel Bonoan were either given new positions in government or afforded immunity from prosecution.

Tinio reiterated that such developments were part of an ongoing effort to suppress evidence, information, and testimonies that would “inevitably” trace back to Marcos in the event that high-ranking officials were pinned down.

He further attributed the overwhelming public narrative that the impeachment trial against Vice President Sara Duterte was a discriminatory approach to accountability, given the fact that flood control investigations have been similarly carried out.

“Whether she [Duterte] gets convicted or not, the perception of the public will remain that this is selective if the people most responsible for the flood control corruption are not prosecuted, primarily the President,” he said.

In light of the forthcoming fifth SONA of the President, Tinio expressed that public outcry over the flood control scandal will remain the same. For him, true accountability can only be achieved if the scandal gets investigated starting from the main orchestrator–Marcos himself.

“With the coming SONA, the public still echoes the call: all involved must be held accountable, and we will start from the very top. With BBM. Only then will all the rest follow,” he explained.

No one is above the law

Amid public sentiments to that of the ACT Teachers representative, the Office of the Ombudsman has maintained that its approach to the anomalies in infrastructure projects was not going to exempt any public official from prosecution.

In a recent interview, Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla denied notions that their office was targeting members of the Senate minority amid the developing criminal cases against Senator Alan Peter Cayetano and Senator Robin Padilla over the escape of wanted Senator Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa from the Senate compound on 14 May.

“No such thing. Remember the people in jail now, many of them were our allies from the very beginning. That’s just, that’s the way it is. Everybody is hit with cases, this is not selective,” he said.

Through a separate briefing in light of the pushback of members from Iglesia ni Cristo (INC) on the arrest of Marcoleta, Assistant Ombudsman Mico Clavano maintained that all investigations were merely following the evidence.

Clavano underscored that they were not biased in their prosecution, noting that they would also investigate the President–if the evidence was present.

“We are not biased to anyone here. The Ombudsman has always said we will follow the evidence. So if the evidence is there, who are we to stop that from coming out?” Clavano said.

“I just also want to repeat that what our brothers at INC are fighting for through their rally about accountability and transparency, that is also what the Ombudsman is fighting for. And I think it will show through our actions that we are not really selective,” he added.

The investigative body had also previously stated that it was currently in the preliminary investigation stage when it came to various “congtractors” involved in the flood control scheme, stressing that they were not in the rush to file cases without sufficient proof to achieve a conviction.