FORMER Ako Bicol party-list Rep. Elizaldy Co has broken his silence on the 2025 budget controversy and flood control scandal, claiming that President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. instructed him to remain outside the Philippines and promised he would be “well taken care of.”
In a video statement sent to reporters on Friday, Co said he was initially planning to return to the Philippines after a medical check-up abroad in July 2025. However, he claims that then House Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez, acting on Marcos’ directives, asked him to stay overseas.
“I stayed silent for a long time because I was given a direct order: ‘do not return to the Philippines and just stay quiet,’” Co said in the video, speaking in Filipino. “As I was about to come back, former Speaker Martin Romualdez called me and said to stay out of the country, and that I would be well taken care of as instructed by the President.”
Co said he initially believed the promise but has now decided to speak out because he feels he is being used as a scapegoat in the government’s anti-corruption campaign.
“I used to believe them, which is why I did not return. I kept my mouth shut and complied. But what I didn’t know was that what they meant by ‘we will take care of you’ was that I would be used as a scapegoat in their anti-corruption campaign. They made me the poster boy of their own lies,” he said.
Co vowed to reveal the “whole truth,” claiming to possess “receipts, evidence, and names.”
Co is currently embroiled in several controversies, including the 2025 national budget mess and the infrastructure project scandal. He has been implicated by contractor couple Curlee and Sarah Discaya, as well as former DPWH officials Henry Alcantara and Brice Hernandez, in alleged kickback schemes related to government contracts. He has also faced scrutiny over his connection to Sunwest Corporation, a major contractor for flood control projects. Co has denied these allegations and said he will respond to them in the proper forum.
