MANILA — Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez has stepped down from the helm of the House of Representatives amid swirling allegations of irregularities in multibillion-peso flood control projects, triggering a dramatic leadership shake-up in Congress.
Antipolo City’s Cong. Ronaldo Puno confirmed that Romualdez, a cousin of President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., informed lawmakers of his decision during a caucus on Tuesday and endorsed House Deputy Speaker Faustino “Bojie” Dy III as his successor.
“Kahapon, pinatawag kami ng ating Speaker Martin Romualdez at sinabihan niya kami na balak na niyang magbitiw sa kanyang pwesto ngayong araw na ito, so rinekomenda niya sa mga party leaders na kung pwede iboto namin si Deputy Speaker Bojie Dy at tulungan siya,” Puno said in an interview with DZMM AM radio.
According to Puno, Romualdez’s resignation had been planned “weeks ago” as controversy over questionable projects snowballed.
“Masyado na daw ang kontrobersya. Gusto niyang ipagtanggol ang reputasyon ng Mababang Kapulungan,” he said. “Sabi niya: ‘Siguro I step aside. Harapin ko itong mga paratang na ito. Hindi maganda ‘yung puro rumor tapos sasabihin ng tao na ginagamit ko ‘yung posisyon ko para umiwas sa pagsusuring ito. Hindi fair sa Kamara.’”
The confirmation came after reports that Romualdez’s personal belongings were moved out of his office Tuesday evening, underscoring the abrupt power shift.
President Marcos earlier said his cousin and congressional allies would “not be spared” from an independent investigation into anomalous infrastructure allocations.
Navotas’ Cong. Toby Tiangco had previously alleged that Romualdez and former House Appropriations chair Zaldy Co were involved in billions worth of dubious fund insertions for substandard or even non-existent projects./PN
