EMBATTLED Rep. Zaldy Co (PL, Ako Bicol) yesterday resigned as a member of the House of Representatives in the face of allegations of massive graft and corruption against him.
Co, who is reportedly in Europe, said in his resignation letter to Speaker Faustino Dy III that he submitted his immediate and irrevocable resignation “on account of the real, direct, grave and imminent threat to the lives of my family members and me and the evident denial of my right to due process of law.”
The resignation came on the same day the Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) filed criminal and administrative charges at the Office of the Ombudsman against Co, former chairperson of the House committee on appropriations, over irregularities found in a P289.5-million flood control project in Naujan, Oriental Mindoro.
Also charged were executives of private contractor Sunwest Inc., one of those being linked to anomalous and “ghost” flood control projects, and officials of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH)-Mimaropa Region 4B led by regional director Gerald Pacanan
The House leadership has given Co 10 days — which ended yesterday — to return to the country to face allegations he pocketed billions in kickbacks from flood control projects.
“With a heavy heart, I’m resigning as a member of Congress. Throughout my term, I strived to be an ally of every Filipino, especially our countrymen in Bicol),” he said in Filipino in a Facebook post.
“This decision is not easy but I thought about it carefully for the sake of my family and the people I continue to serve,” he also said.
Co called “baseless” allegations in an ethics complaint filed against him by Navotas Rep. Tobias Tiangco last week.
He first answered Tiangco’s claim that he violated the Constitution as appropriations panel chair in the 19th Congress when allegedly “masterminded, tolerated and deliberately allowed last-minute insertions and realignments in the 2025 General Appropriations Act (2025 GAA).”
Tiangco said in the complaint that billions were inserted by a “small committee” up to the bicameral committee, adding that these “bypassed priority projects and cast serious doubts in the legitimacy of purpose.”
“I categorically deny these. I did not mastermind or allow any supposed last-minute insertions and realignments in items in the 2025 GAA. All items in the 2025 GAA, including those stated in the corresponding bicameral report, were approved at plenary sessions and following the collegial process of both Houses of Congress,” Co said.
He said it is “improbable, if not absolutely impossible, that I, on my own, could make any supposed insertions without the knowledge or approval of the members of both chambers of Congress.”
“The 2025 GAA was eventually signed into law by the President after what we, as members of the House of Representatives, understood to be a thorough scrutiny by His Excellency of each and every item to ensure that everything is in order,” Co said.
Co noted the 2025 GAA is still being questioned before the Supreme Court and subject of a case before the Office of the Ombudsman. “Until such time as these tribunals make a ruling on the matter, it is premature for Rep. Tiangco to make a claim that the 2025 GAA, including the bicameral report, is not valid and/or that I had, on my own, made insertions in these documents,” he said.
OSTENTATIOUS DISPLAY
Co also denied that he and his family “indulge in extravagant and ostentatious display of wealth in the eye of the public.” “Our lifestyles have not changed from before I became a public official up to now,” he said.
“My wife and children keep away from the media and they certainly do not display what we own to the public. While I do have postings through the media, these are focused on the various projects of Ako Bicol party-list. May family and I do not also live beyond our means,” he said.
He also denied his alleged violation of the House Rules for having acquired or received pecuniary interest from infrastructure projects awarded to Sunwest Inc., of which he is one of the founders.
In a letter to the Ako Bicol, Co said he is taking a leave of absence from the party-list group “until such time as it is safe for me to return to the Philippines to resume my duties as a member and representative of our organization to address the many false claims being made against me.”
CHARGES
ICI chairperson retired Supreme Court justice Andres Reyes personally submitted to the Ombudsman the 32-page interim report of the commission with a recommendation to indict Co and the DPWH officials for malversation of public funds, violations of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act (RA 3019), and violations of the Government Procurement Reform Act (RA 9184).
The ICI also charged them with violations of the Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees (RA 6713) and violations of Civil Service Rules and Regulations specifically pertaining to unlawful financial interest in a firm with government transactions, and mishandling of public funds.
The other DPWH-Mimaropa officials named in the complaint were assistant regional directors Gene Ryan Altea and Ruben Santos Jr., project engineer Felizardo Casuno, materials engineer Timojen Sacar, Planning and Design Division officer-in-charge Montrexis Tamayo, Maintenance Division chief Juliet Calvo, accountant Lerma Cayco, Construction Division chief and Bids and Awards Committee (BAC) chairperson Dominic Serrano, BAC vice chair Friedrich Karl Camero, and BAC members Dennis Abangon and Grace Lopez.
Also named were Sunwest president and Board of Directors chairperson Aderma Angelie Alcazar and members Cesar Buenaventura, Noel Cao, Consuelo Aldon, and Anthony Ngo.
Based on the commission’s report, irregularities were found in the P289.5 million Flood Mitigation Structures Protecting Major/Strategic Public Buildings/Facilities – Construction of Road Dike Along Mag-Asawang Tubig River, Barangay Tagumpay, Naujan, Oriental Mindoro.
The project was funded under the 2024 national budget with the DPWH-Mimaropa Region 4B as the implementing agency.
It was awarded to Sunwest Inc. on Feb. 14, 2024 followed by the issuance of a notice to proceed on March 2 and a contract duration of 360 days.
The ICI said the project was only 92 percent finished. Based on a September 9 ocular inspection conducted by Public Works Secretary Vince Dizon and Oriental Mindoro Gov. Humerlito Dolor, “it was discovered that the steel sheet piles were used for the project were only 2.5 meters in length, with 0.5 meters embedded into the pile cap.:
“Clearly, the steel sheet piles were substandard, because they did not meet the required specifications of the Project,” I added.
Assuming that the rest of the sheet piles were similarly short at only 2.5 meters instead of the required 11.5 meters, the ICI said, the cost of the substandard steel sheet piles alone would put the government loss at P63.86 million.
“Given the substandard materials used for the project, it appears that various DPWH officials, in possible connivance with Sunwest’s officers/directors/employees, made false certifications in the documents which supported and resulted in the payment of Sunwest’s questionable progress billings,” the ICI said.
It added that all responsible DPWH officials who made the progress payments to Sunwest possible through the issuance of false certifications and affixing their signatures of approval may be liable for criminal and administrative penalties.
