All hell breaks lose

Former speaker Martin Romualdez is fuming mad.  He wanted to go to Singapore for a surgery-related medical checkup. The House of Representatives secretary general gave permission to the Leyte congressman. But Ombudsman Jesus Crispin “Boying” Remulla refused to let Martin fly outside the Philippines.

The ombudsman’s excuse: the former speaker is a flight risk. He might do exactly what fugitive former Ako Bicol party-list congressman Zaldy Co has done – escape from the Philippine government’s long arm of the law. Go into hiding.

To deny Martin, a multi-billionaire tycoon-politician, access to financial resources, Remulla asked the Anti-Money Laundering Council to freeze his bank accounts. “His case is money laundering,” Remulla said.

Martin’s reply: I will fight back. I will drag everybody down.

Romualdez felt he was being made the scapegoat for the P1.4-trillion flood control scandal of 2024 and 2025. Trillions disappeared without a trace, without any flood control project being undertaken or completed. The colossal tax money went into pockets of DPWH engineers, politicians and their conniving private contractors.

As House speaker, Romualdez made Zaldy Co chairman of the powerful House appropriations committee that mangled the national budget, enriching politicians enormously.

Romualdez insists he should not be blamed and instead names Co and ousted Senate president Chiz Escudero as scam masterminds, in tandem with the executive branch – meaning President Bongbong Marcos Jr. “The budget does not begin in the House. It begins in the Executive. The agencies and departments prepare their proposals,” explains the fallen speaker.

Martin’s wife, Tingog party-list Rep. Yedda Romualdez, chaired the committee on accounts, the House’s internal budget, budget preparation, disbursement, accounting and financial operations in the previous Congress.

Here’s Martin, with all seriousness and anger, on TV:

“Magandang araw sa inyong lahat.

“For a long time, I chose to remain silent. I did so out of respect for the legal process. I did so because I did not want to add more noise to an already divisive issue. I did so because I believe that if I cooperated fully, submitted myself to the proper authorities and answered every question asked of me, the truth would eventually speak for itself.

“But there comes a point when silence is no longer prudent. My silence has been abused and weaponized to build a narrative that is false, twisted and unfair.

“So, let me be clear, I will not be quiet anymore. I will face this head-on, and I will speak with facts because the truth deserves to be heard. Today, I’m taking this opportunity to speak directly to the Filipino people.

“From the start of this controversy, I have been cooperative. I personally appeared before the proper authorities. I voluntarily submitted my affidavit to the ICI. I provided the information and documents asked of me.

“I did not hide. I did not run. I did not evade scrutiny. I faced it head-on within the proper channel because I know there is no evidence that proves I committed plunder, conspiracy to commit plunder or any similar offense that the ombudsman may be contemplating against me.

“And because I have nothing to hide, I am today authorizing the immediate public release of the affidavit I submitted together with all supporting information so that the Filipino people can judge for themselves who has been transparent and who is simply being politically targeted.

“Now, let us address the most absurd accusation of all, that I am supposedly the mastermind of this corruption scheme. How can I be the mastermind? I was the former speaker of the House of Representatives, but the House of Representatives is only one part of the branch of government, the legislature.

“The national budget is not conceived, executed, implemented, billed out, supervised and completed by one congressman or even by Congress alone, and certainly not by the Speaker of the House. I want to make this simple and clear. The national budget does not depend on just one person. The budget does not begin in the House. It begins in the Executive. The agencies and departments prepare their proposals.

“The Executive consolidates them into the National Expenditure Program, and that program is then submitted to Congress. From there, the House deliberates, but the House is not one person, and it is certainly not the Speaker alone. It is a collegial body made up of hundreds of members, multiple committees, vice chairs and institutional processes.”

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A high or influential government position is the fastest way to atrocious wealth in this country.  And you don’t need brains to be a super rags-to-riches story.

Take Sara Duterte, the Vice President. In his affidavit, whistleblower bodyguard-cum-money launderer Ramil Madriaga related that in the San Sebastian College Law School, “I got close with Atty. Ryan who was previously a professor of Sara and former associate dean of SSC-Law. He shared with me that Sara was not particularly good in school, was often struggling with her academics and habitually rude and violent to other students. Hence, Atty. Ryan used his influence in SSC-Law to ensure that Sara received passing grades despite her poor academic performance.”

Sara denies that she is stupid (boba). Indeed, she is not. She is a genius. In making money grow exponentially.

As Davao City’s vice mayor, Sara grew her networth from P7.25 million in 2007 to P18.49 million in 2008, up 155 percent or two and a half times, in just one year.

Fourteen years later in 2022, Sara’s networth swelled 287.5 percent or 3.87 times, from P18.49 million in 2008 to P71.65 million in 2022, when she became VP.

From 2022’s P71.05 million, Sara’s networth ballooned to P88.512 million in 2024, up 23.5 percent or by 1.23 times.

From P7.25 million in 2007, Sara’s assets jumped to P98.46 million in 2024, an increase of 964 percent or 10.64 times in just 17 years. Sara’s wealth was growing by 57 percent every year for 17 years, or more than double every two years. Genius.

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