Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP) members picketed in front of the Senate on November 14 to coincide with the Blue Ribbon Committee’s reopening investigation into flood control projects. They called for accountability “from top to bottom,” starting with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.

“Hearings which are going around in circles and repetitive must stop. Cover-ups and accountability evasion are unacceptable,” KMP said.

The Senate reopened the investigation after a pause in October. It focused on ghost projects, kickbacks received by senators, and insertions or projects slipped into the 2025 budget.

One witness at the hearing was former Department of Public Works and Highways undersecretary Roberto Bernardo. He detailed how he gave kickbacks to former senators Sonny Angara (now Department of Education secretary) and Grace Poe. He also exposed kickbacks received by senators Jinggoy Estrada, Francis Escudero, Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr., and Nancy Binay.

Meanwhile, Lacson decided against inviting former Ako Bicol Partylist representative Zaldy Co. He first announced Co’s participation via Zoom two days earlier.

Co’s bombshell against the “king of corruption” Marcos

Instead of testifying in the Senate, Co sent journalists a video message directly accusing Marcos as the official with the largest “insertion” in the 2025 budget. He said Marcos ordered him to insert ₱100 billion, allegedly promised by his cousin Martin Romualdez. Marcos transmitted the order through Department of Budget and Management secretary Amenah Pangandaman.

Co also released a list of projects where Marcos’s ₱100 billion insertion went. ₱81 billion went to infrastructure, with 80% allocated to flood control projects. The remainder went to the president’s activities, such as hosting the ASEAN Summit.

Co played a key role in budget preparation since he headed the House of Representatives appropriations committee. He is a member of a small committee in Congress and the bicameral committee that oversee fund insertions for corruption by the president, senators, and representatives.

While in Congress, his family cornered contracts for public infrastructure worth billions of pesos. DPWH engineers who dealt with Co said he took 20%-25% kickbacks from each project.