Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Secretary Manuel Bonoan,
FORMER Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Sec. Manuel Bonoan might be pressured to implicate former Speaker Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez in the Ombudsman’s flood scam investigation.
Lawyer Ade Fajardo, a spokesman for the Leyte 1st district representative, has raised this possibility, pointing out that Bonoan has not spoken a word against Romualdez more than a year after the scam came to light in July 2025.
In an interview on dzRH’s Dos for Dos hosted by Anthony Taberna and Gerry Baja, Fajardo said there is no evidence the former House leader’s accusers has produced against him.
He said the accusations against the Leyte congressman are just baseless stories.
“Wala po talagang ebidensya, kasi wala talagang kinalaman si dating speaker dito sa flood control anomaly. ‘Pag ganyan po walang ebidensya pero madami nang sinasabi ang mga kinauukulan na malakas ang kaso, medyo ang dating sa amin po ‘yan ay bola po ‘yan kasi hanggang ngayon walang naisasampang kaso sa korte, walang criminal cases,” he said.
“Ibig sabihin, wala pong ebidensya o kakulangan ng ebidensya ay sobrang lawak na mahirap punan ng kwento-kwento lang po,” he said.
Fajardo reiterated that they were alarmed and surprised by reports that the Ombudsman planned to use Bonoan to pin down Romualdez, since the former DPWH secretary and department officials who have been investigated have not linked the former Speaker to the flood control scam.
He said Bonoan is now under a lot of pressure, given the fact that he is under hospital arrest and might soon be moved to a regular jail.
“So nakakapagtaka po. Kasi nga ngayon siyempre nasa hospital arrest. May posibilidad na siya, halimbawa, ma-clear siya medically ay siya ay ililipat sa regular na kulungan. ‘Yan ay siyempre medyo maraming pressure sa utak niya,” he said.
“I think he’s more than 80 years old. Sabihin natin nasa takip silim siya sa kanyang pananatili sa ating mundo. Kaya medyo marami ng pressure sa utak ninyo,” he said.
The Romualdez spokesman pointed out that it would not be a remote possibility that Bonoan might be asked to fill the “evidentiary gap” on his principal, which he described as two streams or two rivers wide.
“Kaya kami po ay hindi nagtataka na dahil medyo, alam niyo na, dahil wala nga, sabi ko na parang dalawang batis ng isang malawak na ilog na di mo malalagyan ng ebidensya kaya itutulayan mo kung ano ano. In this case, bigla nalang parang nagkaroon ng perfect memory si Sec. Bonoan in case totoo nga yung balita na siya ay tetestigo para lamang ituro itong si dating Speaker Romualdez,” he stressed.
Asked if he was saying Bonoan was being manipulated, Fajardo said he did not know it for a fact, but there were a lot of possibilities given the former DPWH chief’s situation.
“Hindi namin alam yan as a fact. Pero siyempre bilang nag-iisip tayo lahat, hindi pong malayo ang pusibilidad na maraming factors pong pumapasok sa isip ni Sec. Bonoan,” he said.
He asked why the former secretary speak now when he has not spoken since the scandal erupted more than a year ago.
Fajardo said this is the reason why the Romualdez camp cannot be faulted in thinking of a scenario where evidence might be produced to implicate the former Speaker in the flood control scam.
“Kaya nga kung noon pa man alam niya na pala lahat ito, bakit hindi niya isiniwalat at bakit ngayon lang lumalabas na tila bagang walang usad sa fact-finding investigation. Kaya kami siyempre hindi mo masisi na nag-iisip bakit nagkakaganito ngayon,” he said.
He reiterated that there has been no investigation on the Leyte congressman, and that what is ongoing, based on news reports, is a fact-finding by the Office of the Ombudsman, which has not progressed into a preliminary investigation.
“Wala pa po. Kasi actual subpoena, lalabas po ‘yan kung magsisimula na ang preliminary investigation. Pina-submit ka ng counter-affidavit or defense. At this time po, wala po kaming kaalaman na nag-issue na ng ganyan ang Ombudsman. At handa po kaming sagutin yan sakali mang maglabas sila ng subpoena,” he said.
