MANILA, Philippines — Former House Speaker and incumbent Leyte 1st District Rep. Martin Romualdez will face the Office of the Ombudsman’s preliminary investigation into his alleged involvement in the flood control controversy, his lawyer said Sunday.
Romualdez’s lawyer, Atty. Ade Fajardo, said the lawmaker will answer the allegations against him but wants the proceedings to follow due process.
“We are preparing for the preliminary investigation and Congressman Romualdez will answer that,” Fajardo said in a dzMM interview, according to a statement from Romualdez’s office.
“He is ready to face all of these allegations. But it has to be done through due process. That has always been our position, that we be given a level playing field, so to speak, in these proceedings,” he added.
Fajardo also said Romualdez has no plans to leave the country and continues to perform his duties as Leyte’s first-district representative.
“Congressman Romualdez is not fleeing. He has remained in the country, attending to his constituents and, of course, fulfilling his legislative duties as the representative of Leyte,” he said.
The lawyer also maintained that authorities have presented no evidence linking Romualdez to the enactment of the 2025 national budget or the implementation of flood control projects.
Fajardo said Romualdez only signed the 2025 national budget and pointed to the Independent Commission on Infrastructure’s findings regarding the lack of evidence against the former speaker.
Fajardo also rejected the credibility of testimonies from 18 individuals who claimed to have served as former bodyguards of ex-Ako Bicol party-list Rep. Zaldy Co. The group, referred to as the “maleta boys,” has reportedly provided statements that the Ombudsman may use in its investigation.
“Our initial reaction is the same as what we’ve been saying all along: We do not find the claims of this so-called ‘maleta boy’ believable. They simply lack credibility,” Fajardo said.
He cited the Ombudsman’s earlier statement that the individuals’ claims appeared to have been calculated to destabilize the situation.
Fajardo also pointed to perjury charges that the Department of Justice filed against the 18 individuals.
“Everything they said was a lie, and that has now been proven. The Department of Justice itself, in response to the complaints filed by many of those they accused, has charged them with perjury. Simply put, that means they lied in a sworn statement,” he said.
The lawyer also questioned why the allegations focus on Romualdez when the 18 individuals named more than 20 lawmakers in their statements.
Romualdez has denied involvement in irregularities surrounding flood control projects and previously accused the Ombudsman of building cases using what he described as “discredited” witnesses.
