Former Ako Bicol party-list representative Zaldy Co ignited a political firestorm after releasing a series of video statements accusing President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. and former House Speaker Martin Romualdez of orchestrating ₱100 billion worth of insertions in the proposed 2025 national budget.
In his video, Co claimed that the order for the massive add-ons was relayed to him during last year’s bicameral conference committee deliberations. He said Budget Secretary Amenah Pangandaman informed him that the President wanted ₱100 billion included, with the instruction coursed through senior officials. Co alleged that he merely followed directive and did not personally profit from the additional funding.
According to Co, 25 percent—or around ₱25 billion—was supposedly allocated for Marcos himself, a cut he said was referred to as part of the “SOP.” He insisted that none of the money went to him, saying the insertions were intended solely for the President and for Romualdez.
Co released a document listing the projects allegedly inserted into the budget, including large-scale infrastructure such as roads, bridges, flyovers, flood mitigation works, and riverbank protections. He also pointed to billions placed under the Office of the President, including allocations he said were justified as hosting expenses for the upcoming 2026 ASEAN Summit.
The former lawmaker escalated his accusations further in another video, where he claimed that suitcases filled with cash, which he referred to as “maletas,” were delivered directly to both Marcos and Romualdez. He alleged that he, along with his assistants and security personnel, brought the cash-filled luggage to the President’s residence in Malacañang and to Romualdez’s home. Co displayed photos of the supposed suitcases, saying they contained millions of pesos each.
He also corroborated earlier testimony from his alleged former security aide, Orly Guteza, who told lawmakers that he had delivered “maletas ng basura”—a supposed codename for cash-loaded suitcases—to Co and Romualdez. Guteza said some of the suitcases contained as much as ₱48 million.
The accusations immediately drew strong denials from the government. The Presidential Communications Office, through Acting Secretary Dave Gomez, dismissed Co’s claims as “hearsay,” urging him to return to the country and swear to his statements under oath. President Marcos, for his part, said he had “no intention of dignifying” the allegations.
Budget Secretary Pangandaman also rejected Co’s narrative, saying all presidential-ordered budget items were already included in the National Expenditure Program, and therefore allegations of illicit insertions were baseless.
As Co’s videos continue to circulate, the mounting controversy adds to ongoing public scrutiny over alleged irregularities in government spending, particularly involving multi-billion-peso infrastructure and flood-control allocations. Lawmakers and civil society groups have since renewed calls for an independent investigation into the former lawmaker’s allegations.
