Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla on Tuesday said his long-standing friendship and fraternity ties with former House Speaker Martin Romualdez would not interfere with the enforcement of the law.

Remulla said he, his brother Ombudsman Jesus Crispin “Boying” Remulla and Romualdez were close friends and fraternity brothers during their years at the University of the Philippines.

“Si Ombudsman Boying, ako at si Speaker Martin ay very close friends rin, fraternity brothers kami,” Remulla said during a briefing at Camp Crame.

He added that his brother and Romualdez had an especially close relationship, but stressed that personal ties would not affect the handling of the case.

“Wala ho kaming iniilagan dito, wala hong kaibigan, wala hong fraternity brother,” he said.

Remulla also said President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., Romualdez’s cousin, treated the former Speaker like a brother but gave no instructions on how authorities should handle his case.

“Hindi lang magpinsan yan, magkapatid yan,” Remulla said.

He added that Marcos had given “zero instructions” regarding Romualdez’s treatment.

Remulla recalled meeting Romualdez at Cardinal Santos Medical Center, where the former Speaker was confined.

“Wala siyang request. English kasi kami magsalita niyan kasi Oxford siya nag-aral,” Remulla quipped.

He said he told Romualdez, “Brother, I hope you understand why I am doing this. It’s nothing personal,” to which Romualdez replied, “It’s okay, I understand.”

Remulla said Romualdez had been part of his life since he was young, recalling that fraternity meetings were once held at the former Speaker’s home.

Still, he maintained that the government would follow legal procedures.

“The law is the law,” Remulla said.

He added that authorities would continue to follow court rules and medical assessments in determining Romualdez’s custody and fitness to face proceedings.