President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Friday said he would ask Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla for an update on the filing of charges against his cousin, former House Speaker Martin Romualdez, who has been tagged by the Office of the Ombudsman as a central figure in the multibillion-peso “floodgate” scandal.

“I am not privy to the investigation being conducted by the Ombudsman or the schedule. We will leave it to the Ombudsman. But now that you asked me, I will give them a call and ask how it is going,” Marcos told a member of the Foreign Correspondents Association of the Philippines during a luncheon at the Diamond Hotel Manila.

Marcos said investigations into those allegedly involved in the controversy are continuing, while several suspects are already behind bars and undergoing trial as the government pursues accountability for public funds allegedly stolen through anomalous projects.

“I will not be surprised if those investigations continue to go beyond my term or in 2028. I sincerely hope it does. That will discourage people from continuing corrupt practices,” Marcos said.

The President said he exposed contractors allegedly colluding with lawmakers, dubbed “congtractors,” during his 2025 State of the Nation Address after being shocked by the scale of public funds and kickbacks allegedly involved.

“I was shocked by what is going on. [Corruption] is so endemic and deeply rooted. We have to do something very radical to change their position and the way they view the government,” Marcos said.

“And that is why when I say I hope this continues beyond my term, that is because then we will have succeeded in changing that [corruption] culture,” he added.

In his fifth State of the Nation Address on 27 July, Marcos announced that the Ombudsman was preparing to file multiple criminal charges against Romualdez.

No complaint has yet been filed before the Sandiganbayan, and no definite timeline for the filing has been announced.

The Ombudsman, however, has ordered Romualdez to submit a counter-affidavit within 15 days over recommended charges of plunder, graft, bribery and money laundering in connection with the alleged flood control scandal.