The Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) is expecting to have former House Speaker Martin Romualdez, former Rep. Elizaldy Co and Sen. Mark Villar in its next hearings.
In an ambush interview on Wednesday, October 1, ICI Executive Director Brian Hosaka said that Romualdez, Co and Villar will be receiving subpoenas to shed light on the controversy surrounding the budget insertions and kickback scheme in infrastructure deals.
‘Yes, I believe he will be invited, or in fact, I think according to our secretariat, he was invited already. I just have to find out if the summons or the subpoena was actually received,’ Hosaka said, referring to Romualdez.
He later confirmed to reporters that Co and Villar will also be invited.
Villar, an ex-DPWH secretary
He explained that Villar will be invited simply because he served as the Department of Public Works and Highways’ (DPWH) secretary during the Duterte administration, which is well within the ICI’s 10-year scope.
Both the House and Senate hearings into the anomalous flood control projects have mentioned Villar’s name, especially as he was the one who appointed the dismissed Bulacan district engineer Henry Alcantara in 2019.
In an interview with reporters on Wednesday, Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla also said that the Department of Justice (DOJ) is looking into Villar and his family over a potential conflict of interest case due to the reported P18 billion worth of government infrastructure contracts awarded to Villar’s cousin.
Remulla said that the DOJ is scrutinizing Villar’s actions in two capacities: as a current lawmaker and, significantly, as the former DPWH secretary.
‘First cousin niya ang contractor sa lugar nila, that’s a prohibited interest,’ Remulla said. (His first cousin is a contractor in their province, that’s a prohibited interest.)
When asked if Sen. Camille Villar, who is a former member of the House of Representatives, will be included, he said: ‘Siyempre kasama iyan, kasama rin iyan, it really has to stop, isa lang iyan, pero ano iyan it’s all over the Philippines, people know it.’
(Of course she’s included, she’s included. It really has to stop, and that’s just one, what more if you look all over the Philippines? People know it.)
ICI out for Co
Co, meanwhile, is the former House appropriations chair and a key figure in the flood control investigations, with several resource persons accusing him of allegedly manipulating the 2025 budget and seeking commissions from flood control projects.
Alcantara claimed that Co padded the national budget with P35 billion worth of infrastructure projects for Bulacan’s First District from 2022 to 2025. He said the former lawmaker sought 20% in kickbacks, citing one instance in 2022 where Co was given P519 million.
Meanwhile, dismissed DPWH district engineer Brice Hernandez claimed he delivered P1 billion in 20 suitcases, transported in as many as seven vans by one of Co’s staff, to a hotel in Taguig City.
Former DPWH Undersecretary Roberto Bernardo, on the other hand, said Co asked for a 25% commission from public works deals through Alcantara.
The ICI has already recommended the filing of criminal and administrative charges against Co for his ties to top contractor, Sunwest Inc., which he co-founded in 1997. Sunwest had bagged over P86 billion in government infrastructure deals from 2016 to 2025. It was also the contractor behind the anomalous P289-million Oriental Mindoro flood control project.
Why Romualdez?
While the ICI’s initial report did not name Romualdez or recommend charges against him, testimonies at the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee have since referenced him in receiving alleged kickbacks.
One of Co’s former security aides alleged that 35 suitcases of cash were delivered to Romualdez’s Taguig property, with 11 reportedly left with Co – each containing an estimated P48 million. According to Orly Guteza, Co regularly received such luggage.
The Discayas, also known as the super contractor family, also implicated Romualdez in their initial testimony at the Senate hearing.
But during a House hearing, Curlee Discaya said Romualdez’s name was probably being used by others to secure kickbacks from projects they handled. He said he had no direct transaction with him.
Remulla also noted that appointing Co as the appropriations chair of the 19th Congress was the “speaker’s choice,” linking Romualdez in the DOJ’s case build-up.
Repeatedly denying the allegations, Romualdez stepped down as House speaker, while Co resigned as a member of the House of Representatives.
Despite Co’s resignation, he has yet to return to the Philippines to attend the hearings he was invited to, which now also include the Senate.