While it is his prerogative to step down from his post, former Ako Bicol party-list Rep. Zaldy Co should still return to the country to face the possible charges against him for his alleged involvement in anomalous flood control projects of the government, according to Malacañang.
The renewed call for Co came as his colleagues at the House of Representatives expected him not to come back anytime soon, and the Department of Justice raising concern that it would be ‘inevitable’ for him to be a ‘fugitive.’
‘Nothing can stop him from making his decisions, but if ever a case is filed against him, he will not be able to avoid it, he cannot run away from it,’ Palace press officer Claire Castro said in a briefing on Tuesday.
‘So it would be better that if he becomes an accused, he should simply fight for his rights and defend his innocence based on the evidence he holds,’ she added.
Co resigned from being a member of the House on Monday, citing ‘the real, direct, grave and imminent threat’ to him as well as ‘the lives of my family members.’
The decision to leave his post came just as the Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) asked the Office of the Ombudsman to recommend filing of graft complaints against him and 17 others, including officials of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) and his construction firm Sunwest Inc. over a substandard flood control project in Oriental Mindoro worth P289.5 million.
According to the ICI, Co, as former House appropriations committee chairperson, received unwarranted benefits in relation to construction projects of Sunwest.
Co was accused of getting billions of pesos in kickbacks by contractors and DPWH officials testifying in congressional inquiries into flood control projects.
‘If his name is being mentioned, then definitely he must answer it. Because if he fails to respond and chooses to avoid it, he will only appear guilty. That’s why it is better for him to explain his side,’ Castro said.
The DOJ has requested the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol) to issue a blue notice on Co.
Castro said the DOJ was still waiting for a response from the Interpol on its request as of Tuesday.
Should it be granted, the notice practically allows surveillance on the lawmaker, since it serves to advise Interpol’s member states to ‘collect additional information about a person’s identity, location or activities in relation to a criminal investigation.’
According to Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla, they no longer expect Co to face the DOJ, which may lead to him being tagged as a fugitive through the Interpol.
‘He won’t make any more appearances. He will be a fugitive. Isn’t that how people usually act when they have problems-they disappear?’ said Remulla in a press conference.
‘So far, he’s not yet a fugitive, but that will inevitably be his status here,’ he added.
As of Sept. 29, Remulla said Co was currently staying in Madrid, Spain.
The DOJ is verifying reports that he is set to return to Singapore via Dubai, United Arab Emirates on Oct. 5 to get admitted to a hospital.