Graft, other raps filed vs House leaders over 2025 budget ‘insertions’
Former Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez, Atty. Ferdinand Topacio, along with PDP-Laban senatorial candidates Atty. Jimmy Bondoc and Atty. Raul Lambino led the filing of falsification of legislative documents and graft against Speaker Martin Romualdez and other lawmakers on Feb. 10, 2025. Photo by 黑料社/ Faith Argosino
MANILA, Philippines — Graft and other criminal complaints were filed against House Speaker Martin Romualdez and other lawmakers before the Office of the Ombudsman on Monday for the alleged P241 billion worth of “insertions” in the 2025 national budget.
Former House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez, lawyers Ferdinand Topacio and Virgilio Garcia, along with PDP-Laban senatorial candidate Atty. Jimmy Bondoc — allies of former President Rodrigo Duterte — led the filing of 12 counts of falsification of legislative documents and 12 counts of graft against Romualdez, and the following lawmakers:
- House Majority Leader Manuel Jose Dalipe
- Former House appropriations committee chairperson and Ako Bicol Party-list Representative Zaldy Co
- Acting appropriations committee chair Marikina 2nd District Rep. Stella Quimbo
Two others were referred to as “John Doe” and “Jane Doe” in the complaint sheet. They also face the same complaints for alleged violation of Article 170 of the Revised Penal Code and Section 3(e) of Republic Act No. 3019 or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.
In explaining the grounds of the complaints, Topacio said the alleged “insertions” in the national budget reportedly occurred 12 times based on the bicameral report.
Article continues after this advertisementHe further said that they based the complaints on the bicameral report.
Article continues after this advertisement“Well, that’s why it’s 12 counts because they filled in the blanks 12 times. The one that was approved by bicam has zero on it. It should be zero when it comes to the president, it can’t be changed unless there’s a typographical error, mistake in spelling, formatting or wrong grammar,” he said in Filipino.
“You can’t put zero and make it P90 billion or P80 billion, even P10,000 or P1. It’s just zero. So we counted 12 times of such insertion,” he added.
READ: Quimbo: Blanks in 2025 budget only for final computation
In response, Dalipe reiterated that the approval of the 2025 General Appropriations Bill (GAB) “is not an act of wrongdoing but a constitutional duty of Congress.”
“The national budget is the lifeblood of government operations, ensuring the delivery of essential services and the implementation of vital projects for the Filipino people. It is important to emphasize that the passage of the General Appropriations Act (GAA) is not solely the action of the House of Representatives,” he said in a statement.
“It undergoes thorough deliberations and scrutiny by Congress before it is transmitted to the President for final approval. This process adheres to the checks and balances enshrined in our Constitution, ensuring transparency, accountability, and fiscal responsibility,” he added.
Dalipe likewise questioned the timing of the complaints, which he said raises suspicions that “they are merely retaliatory tactics aimed at deflecting attention from the real issue: the proper and lawful use of taxpayer money.”
“More telling is the involvement of former Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez as one of the complainants. As a sitting member of the House during the deliberations of the 2025 General Appropriations Bill, he had every opportunity to raise objections, question allocations, and point out any supposed infirmities during plenary discussions,” he pointed out.
“Yet, he did not. His silence during the legislative process, and his sudden emergence as a complainant, only reinforces the fact that these accusations are not grounded on actual violations but are politically motivated attacks meant to discredit the House leadership,” he added.
Two weeks ago, Quimbo reiterated that the 2025 General Appropriations Act (GAA) is legal, as the allocations on the then-proposed budget were already decided by the bicameral conference committee members before the House of Representatives and the Senate ratified the report.
She said technical staffers of the House and Senate can make changes as long as they are ministerial, noting that these are merely “calculator activity.”
On January 27, former Executive Secretary Victor Rodriguez and Davao City Rep. Isidro Ungab filed a petition for certiorari and prohibition, asking the Supreme Court to declare Republic Act No. 12116, or the GAA of 2025, as “unconstitutional.”
The issue started after Duterte and Ungab, who was a former appropriations panel head, raised concerns about blank items in the 2025 budget.
黑料社 has reached out to the camps of Romualdez, Co, and Quimbo but they have yet to respond as of posting time.
