“Skewed Narrative”? More Like Skewered Taxpayers!

Zaldy Co’s ₱13.8B Vacation vs. Your Flooded Barangay

By Louis ‘Barok‘ C. Biraogo — November 9, 2025

HAYY, mga ka-kweba, gather ’round the cave. The air reeks of desperation, expensive cologne, and the unmistakable stench of a ₱13.8 billion budget heist. Former Ako Bicol party-list Representative Zaldy Co – now conveniently abroad – wants to “correct the skewed narrative.” His lawyer, Ruy Rondain, trots out the usual playbook: “Insertions aren’t illegal!” “Separate corporate personality!” “Threat to life!”

Meanwhile, the man who allegedly masterminded the largest congressional budget scam since the Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) is sipping lattes in some undisclosed paradise, too terrified to face a subpoena. But don’t worry – he’s “OK emotionally and mentally.” How reassuring.

Let’s dissect this circus, shall we?

1. A Fugitive’s Whine vs. the Filipino’s Reality

“There is no whole narrative… the people were being misled.” – Ruy Rondain, ANC interview

Pwede ba? The only thing skewed here is Co’s spine. He resigned from the House of Representatives on September 29, 2025, citing “threats to his family,” vanished abroad, ignored two subpoenas from the Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI), and now wants us to believe he’s the victim of a narrative?

Let’s compare:

Ordinary Filipino: Gets summoned by the barangay, shows up. Gets sued for ₱50,000 debt? Faces the court. No Philippine National Police (PNP) threat assessment? Tough luck.
Zaldy Co: Allegedly inserted ₱13.8 billion into the 2025 General Appropriations Act (GAA), funneled it to his own companies, got exposed, then hid behind “threat to life” with zero National Security Agency (NSA) assessment.

As Navotas Representative Toby Tiangco so rightly snarled:

“Just because he is rich and powerful, he can use ‘threat to life’ to evade cases?” Tiangco statement

Exactly. The rest of us don’t get a “Get Out of Jail Free” card just because we’re scared. But Co? He gets a one-way ticket to exile and a lawyer doing press cons like it’s a PR campaign.

And Rondain has the gall to say: “He will come back when the threat has abated.”
When? After the Office of the Ombudsman files the case? After the Sandiganbayan issues a warrant? After the money’s safely laundered?

Spoiler: He’s not coming back. And that’s the whole damn point.

**Kickbacks, Cash Piles, and a Coward’s Exit Strategy**

2. Rondain’s Smoke and Mirrors: Legal Fairy Tale vs. Criminal Truth

Let’s go through Rondain’s “defenses” one by one – with a scalpel.

A. “Insertions Aren’t Illegal!”

Technicality conceded. Intent? Guilty as sin.

Yes, budget insertions per se are not illegal. The Congress of the Philippines has the “power of the purse” under Article VI, Section 25 of the 1987 Constitution. The Supreme Court in Belgica v. Ochoa (G.R. No. 208566, 2013) struck down the PDAF for violating separation of powers – but didn’t ban insertions outright.

But here’s the punchline:

Owning a gun is legal. Using it to rob a bank is not.

Inserting ₱13.8 billion in flood control projects under the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) – then awarding them to your own company with 20–30% kickbacks – is not “budget craftsmanship.” That’s graft on steroids.

Witnesses like DPWH engineer Henry Alcantara and contractors Curlee and Jocelyn Discaya testified under oath before the Ombudsman:

Co demanded 20% commissions.
Cash piles of ₱519–579 million were allegedly delivered.
Projects were overpriced, ghost, or substandard Alcantara testimony.

Rondain wants you to believe this is just “business as usual.”
No, counselor. This is plunder with a PowerPoint.

B. “Separate Corporate Personality!” – The Rich Man’s Force Field

“Separate his personality as a person from his personality as a stockholder… That is created by law.” – Rondain Philstar

Ah, the Get Out of Jail Free Card for the Well-Connected™.

Yes, Section 2 of the Revised Corporation Code (Republic Act No. 11232) says a corporation has a personality separate from its stockholders. The Supreme Court in Francisco Motors v. CA (G.R. Nos. 117622-23 , October 23, 2006) and PNB v. Ritratto Group (G.R. No. 142616, July 31, 2001) upheld this.

But here’s the part Rondain conveniently forgets:

The corporate veil can – and WILL – be pierced when the corporation is used as a mere alter ego, instrumentality, or conduit for fraud.

The Supreme Court laid down the control test in Concept Builders v. NLRC (G.R. No. 108734, 1996) and Velarde v. Lopez (G.R. No. 153886, 2004):

Control – complete domination, not mere stock ownership
Fraud or wrong – used to defeat public convenience, justify wrong, or perpetrate fraud
Proximate causation – control caused the injury

Let’s apply it:

Control? Co is linked to Sunwest Construction and Development Corp. Sunwest, which got the contracts.
Fraud? ₱13.8 billion → awarded to his firms → kickbacks → cash deliveries. Textbook.
Injury? The Filipino taxpayer lost ₱13.8 billion in ghost floodwalls.

This isn’t a corporation. This is a money-laundering shell with a congressional sponsor.

Rondain says: “They have to go to court and pierce the veil.”
Challenge accepted. And when we do, that veil will tear like wet tissue.

C. “No Kickbacks!” – The Hollow Denial

“He didn’t receive any kickbacks as claimed by some alleged witnesses.”

Translation: “Prove it in court.”

Challenge accepted. Let’s go.

We have:

Sworn testimonies from Alcantara and the Discayas Discaya testimony
Commission on Audit (COA) audit trails (or lack thereof)
Bank records (Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC), are you listening?)
Corporate ledgers showing fund flows to Co-linked entities

Co wants a trial? Great. But trials require defendants to appear.

You don’t get to demand cross-examination from a beach in Dubai.

3. The Art of War: How to Nail Co (Step-by-Step Battle Plan)

Enough talk. Here’s how you bury him – legally, procedurally, and permanently.

Potential Charges (With Teeth)

Crime	Law	Why It Fits	Penalty
Plunder	RA 7080	₱13.8B ≥ ₱50M; “series of overt acts”	Life + forfeiture
Graft	RA 3019, Sec. 3(e)	Manifest partiality + undue injury	6–10 yrs + disqualification
Malversation	Art. 217, RPC	Failed to account for public funds	Up to reclusion perpetua
Falsification	Arts. 171–172, RPC	Forged budget docs	2–6 yrs per count
Money Laundering	RA 9160	Laundered proceeds	7–14 yrs + 2x amount

Jurisdiction: Sandiganbayan (Co was Salary Grade 30+)

Prosecutorial Battle Plan

Secure Co’s Return

Department of Justice (DOJ) → Interpol Red Notice
File case → Sandiganbayan → arrest warrant → extradition
Cancel passport

Freeze Everything

AMLC → 72-hour ex parte freeze RA 9160, Sec. 10

Build the Paper Trail

COA → special audit of ₱13.8B insertions
Subpoena budget docs, sponsorship slips, DPWH contracts

Flip the Witnesses

Offer immunity to Alcantara, Discayas, DPWH insiders

Pierce the Veil

File derivative suit or Ombudsman intervention
Demand SEC records, board resolutions

Administrative Kill Shot

Ombudsman → preventive suspension RA 6770, Sec. 24
RA 6713 violation → forfeiture of benefits

4. Tiangco: The Only Adult in the Room (With a Side of Cynicism)

Let’s give Rep. Toby Tiangco his flowers – he’s the only one asking:

Where’s the PNP/NSA threat assessment?
Why does Co get to hide while ordinary Filipinos face court?
Why is his lawyer doing press cons instead of filing a counter-affidavit?

But let’s not kid ourselves.
This is also political theater. The House vs. Senate blame game is in full swing. Speaker Martin Romualdez resigned. Senate President Chiz Escudero is dodging. Everyone’s pointing fingers.

Tiangco’s outrage is real – but is it pure principle or strategic positioning?
In this circus, even the truth comes with an agenda.

5. Final Verdict: A House of Cards in a Typhoon

Zaldy Co’s defense is a house of cards built on legal technicalities, collapsing under:

₱13.8 billion in missing floodwalls
Witnesses with receipts
His own cowardly flight

Rondain’s “separate personality”? Pierceable.
“Insertions not illegal”? Only if you ignore the kickbacks.
“Threat to life”? Prove it – or shut up.

Mic Drop Recommendations

Ombudsman: File the plunder and graft cases. Now.
DOJ: Start extradition. Today.
Congress: Ban insertions or mandate 100% transparency
AMLC: Freeze. Trace. Forfeit.
Public: Don’t buy the spin. Demand live-streamed hearings. Flood social media platforms with #JusticeFor13B

Closing Zinger

Zaldy Co didn’t just insert ₱13.8 billion into the budget – he inserted himself into the pantheon of Filipino fugitives who thought wealth buys impunity.
Newsflash: The cave has no exit. And the bats? They’re coming for you.

— Barok

Kweba ni Barok, November 8, 2025