Philippine ex-Speaker jailed in ₱7.44bn flood-control plunder case

The record

The Sandiganbayan, the Philippines’ special anti-graft court, has found probable cause to try former House Speaker Martin Romualdez for plunder over alleged kickbacks on public infrastructure work, most of it flood-control projects. According to OCCRP, which reported the arrest on 8 September 2026, prosecutors put the amount at ₱7.44 billion, about $118 million, collected from contractors between 2022 and 2025.

Romualdez is a first cousin of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and still represents the first district of Leyte in the House of Representatives. He stepped down as Speaker in September 2025, as the flood-control scandal widened. OCCRP reports that the warrants for all four accused were issued with no bail recommended.

What the court decided

The Sandiganbayan’s Third Division adopted its resolution in case E-SB-26-CRM-0074 on 7 September 2026. The one-page document records that the Office of the Ombudsman, in a resolution dated 4 September, indicted four people for plunder under Section 2 of Republic Act No. 7080: Romualdez; Elizaldy “Zaldy” Co, a former party-list representative for Ako Bicol; Joselyn Tragua Serenio; and Felicito Cristobal Guevarra.

After reviewing the Ombudsman’s resolution and supporting records, the three justices found probable cause, ordered arrest warrants against all four and imposed a hold departure order barring them from leaving the country. OCCRP identifies Serenio as Romualdez’s personal assistant and Guevarra as the president of a foreign-exchange company.

Hospital, jail and arraignment

Police served the warrant at Cardinal Santos Medical Center in San Juan City, where Romualdez had been admitted. Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla said he had suffered a cardiovascular event, unstable blood pressure and an anxiety attack, according to OCCRP. He was kept under police guard.

According to the Philippine Daily Inquirer, he spent almost a week in hospital before being moved to the New Quezon City Jail. On 16 September he appeared by video link, in a wheelchair, and pleaded not guilty. The court gave his lawyers ten days to explain why he should not be preventively suspended from office. One of them said a bail petition would follow; plunder is not bailable when the evidence of guilt is strong.

The Inquirer reports that the court has declared Co a fugitive from justice and that Serenio and Guevarra remain at large. In April 2026 the Sandiganbayan had already issued a precautionary hold departure order against Romualdez at the Ombudsman’s request. The Inquirer has also reported that complaints still before the Ombudsman concern a larger sum, about ₱56 billion; the case now in court covers ₱7.44 billion.

The responses

Romualdez’s lawyer, Ade Fajardo, said his client would answer the allegations through the legal process and was not asking for special treatment. “We respect the courts and the legal process,” he said, as quoted by OCCRP. Romualdez has entered a plea of not guilty. The presidential palace said it respected the Ombudsman’s decision and that wrongdoers should be held to account whether they are relatives, allies or opponents of the president. Co has not taken part in the proceedings.

Questions that remain unanswered

Which contracts, and which contractors, does the ₱7.44 billion figure rest on, and how was each payment allegedly routed? What role is a foreign-exchange business alleged to have played in moving the money? And will the larger complaints still under preliminary investigation reach the court?

The Sandiganbayan’s finding of probable cause allows a trial to proceed; it is not a determination of guilt. The allegations summarised here are the prosecution’s case as reported by OCCRP and the Philippine Daily Inquirer. All four accused are presumed innocent unless convicted.

Based on reporting from: OCCRP · 8 September 2026; Philippine Daily Inquirer · September 2026; Sandiganbayan, Third Division · Resolution in E-SB-26-CRM-0074, People vs Romualdez et al. · 7 September 2026.