MANILA — Former House Speaker Martin Romualdez is set to be placed under the custody of the Quezon City Jail after the Sandiganbayan ordered his commitment as a detention prisoner while he faces a P7.4-billion plunder case.
The Sandiganbayan Third Division issued the commitment order to Jail Superintendent Maria Pacion, warden of the Quezon City Jail-Male Dormitory in Payatas, directing the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology to receive Romualdez into its custody.
The anti-graft court also scheduled his arraignment and pretrial proceedings for September 14.
The order came as the court separately heard arguments Thursday on Romualdez’s bid to remain confined at Cardinal Santos Medical Center in San Juan City, where he was arrested on Monday.
Romualdez was charged by the Office of the Ombudsman along with former Ako Bicol party-list congressman Zaldy Co, his former personal assistant Joselyn Tragua Serenio, and Samchan Foreign Exchange Corp. president Felicito Cristobal Guevarra over an alleged kickback scheme involving government flood control projects.
The Ombudsman has accused the group of involvement in a P7.4-billion plunder case.
At Thursday’s hearing, Dr. Rosalio Torres, team manager of Cardinal Santos Medical Center, testified about the circumstances surrounding Romualdez’s admission.
Torres said hospital personnel contacted him at around 9 or 10 a.m. on September 7 to report that Romualdez was experiencing chest pain.
He said he subsequently advised that Romualdez be confined after cardiologist Dr. Rody Sy reportedly determined that the former Speaker should be admitted and evaluated because he was considered at high risk for a cardiovascular complication.
Romualdez was eventually admitted at around 4 p.m. that day.
His camp had asked the Sandiganbayan to permit his continued hospital confinement, citing his medical condition.
In his earlier nine-page court filing, Romualdez said he had a history of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular ailments and had undergone angioplasty in October 2024 because of coronary artery disease.
His listed conditions included hypertensive atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, unstable angina, coronary artery disease, cerebrovascular ischemic disease, Type 2 diabetes, hypertension, dyslipidemia and primary hypothyroidism.
Doctors at Cardinal Santos had earlier declared Romualdez medically unfit to travel to Thursday’s proceedings.
The Ombudsman, however, opposed his request to remain at the private hospital. Assistant Ombudsman Mico Clavano said prosecutors would ask that a team of government physicians independently assess Romualdez and determine whether his conditions required continued hospitalization.
During Thursday’s hearing, prosecutors reiterated their position before the Sandiganbayan.
“We pray that the accused be detained at the BJMP,” the prosecution told the court./PN
