By MA. THERESA LADIAO
ILOILO City – Seven infrastructure projects in Western Visayas — three in Iloilo and four in Guimaras — were allegedly among the items ordered inserted into the 2025 national budget, former Ako Bicol party-list congressman Elizaldy Co claimed as he went public Friday with explosive accusations linking the directive to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., Budget Secretary Amenah Pangandaman, and former House Speaker Martin Romualdez.
Co’s revelations place Western Visayas at the heart of what he describes as a top-down political maneuver, deepening scrutiny over how billions in public works allocations were supposedly engineered during budget negotiations.
The projects — ranging from slope protection in upland Iloilo to multi-segment enhancements of the Guimaras Circumferential Road — form part of what Co calls the “P100-billion insertion package.”
“Ngayon, hindi na ako mananahimik. Ilalabas ko ang lahat ng katotohanan — may resibo, may ebidensya, at may pangalan,” he said.
Iloilo, Guimaras projects ‘ordered inserted,’ Co alleges
Co said Budget Undersecretary Adrian Bersamin told him Pangandaman had been instructed by Marcos to embed at least P100 billion worth of new items during the Bicameral Conference Committee talks — including Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) infrastructure projects in Iloilo and Guimaras.
THE 3 ILOILO PROJECTS IDENTIFIED
1. Road Slope Protection Structure, Manasa, Alimodian (Site 3)
* ₱100 million (contract cost: ₱96,000,500)
* DPWH Region 6, Iloilo 4th District Engineering Office
* A landslide-prone upland section crucial to farm-to-market access
2. Iloilo East Coast–Capiz Road (K0163+760 to K0171+781)
* ₱104 million
* A major agricultural transport corridor linking Iloilo’s eastern towns to Capiz
3. Iloilo–Capiz Road (New Route) (K0116 to K0118)
* ₱36.5 million
* Proposed new alignment meant to ease congestion in existing inter-provincial routes.
THE 4 GUIMARAS PROJECTS TAGGED
All involve sections of the province’s essential circumferential road — Guimaras’ primary mobility spine used for tourism, trade, and inter-town transport:
* K0096 – K0097+850 – ₱99.5 million
* K0097+850 – K0100+400 – ₱99.5 million
* K0100+400 – K0101+950 – ₱99.5 million
* K0101+950 – K0102+494 and K0104+880 – K0105+800 – ₱99.5 million
Co said these Western Visayas allocations were processed as part of the large-scale “insertions” allegedly initiated at the highest levels of government.
‘What the President wants, he gets’
Co said Bersamin’s disclosure prompted him to immediately notify Romualdez.
“Right after our conversation, I called former Speaker Martin Romualdez and reported the instructions of the President to insert the ₱100 billion projects,” Co said. “He told me, ‘What the President wants, he gets.’”
The claim suggests, Co argues, that the budget maneuver was not an individual initiative but a coordinated act sanctioned by the most powerful figures in government.
‘Ordered to stay abroad’ amid controversy
Co further alleged that after traveling abroad for a medical check-up, he was directed — again through Romualdez — not to return home as the controversy built up.
“I left on July 19, 2025 for my medical check-up, planning to return after the President’s SONA,” Co said. “But as I was about to come back, former Speaker 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.”
That “care,” Co said, turned out to be something else entirely:
“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 promises to release ‘receipts’
Co insisted he is speaking out now because efforts are underway to pin the entire ₱100-billion issue solely on him.
“To every Filipino, I know your anger toward me is strong right now. But before you judge, allow me to explain the full truth,” he said. “May resibo, may ebidensya.”
As of press time, Malacañang, the Department of Budget and Management, and Romualdez’s camp have not issued statements on Co’s allegations./PN
