Ombudsman files charges against Zaldy Co, et al for P289M flood control project

The Ombudsman on Tuesday filed before the Sandiganbayan corruption and malversation of public funds charges against former Ako-Bicol party-list Rep. Zaldy Co, several officials of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Region 4B, and Sunwest Corporation directors.

Assistant Ombudsman Mico Clavano told reporters that the charges were in connection with the alleged anomalous P289 million flood control project in Oriental Mindoro.

The filing of charges, received by the Sandiganbayan Judicial and Records Division at 1:50 pm, marked the first filing of criminal raps against those allegedly involved in the flood control kickback scheme that President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. first flagged during his fourth State of the Nation Address last July.

Government prosecutors said that the P289 million non-existent flood control project built by Sunwest Corporation, a firm owned by Co's immediate family members, is substandard.

The P289-million flood control project is a road dike along the Mag-Asawang Tubig River in Naujan, Oriental Mindoro. It was funded under the 2024 national budget of the DPWH. 

"This is the first of many cases," Clavano said. 

The charges filed involved a violation of Section 3.e and 3.h of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.

Section 3.e of the law refers to “causing any undue injury to any party, including the government, or giving any private party any unwarranted benefits, advantage or preference in the discharge of his official administrative or judicial functions through manifest partiality, evident bad faith or gross inexcusable negligence.”

Section 3.h, meanwhile, is about “directly or indirectly having financial or pecuniary interest in any business, contract or transaction in connection with which he intervenes or takes part in his official capacity, or in which he is prohibited by the Constitution or by any law from having any interest.”

The Independent Commission for Infrastructure, on Sept. 29, recommended the filing of graft, malversation, and falsification charges against Co and other Department of Public Works and Highways officials over their alleged links to the P289.5 million road dike project on the Mag-Asawang Tubig River in Naujan, Oriental Mindoro.

The ICI said the DPWH Region IV-B implemented the flood management project through contractor Sunwest Inc., which has historical links to Co.

The ICI said that based on the DPWH documents and inspection, the government lost an estimated P63 million over the project due to materials being substandard and unaligned to the required specifications.

The filing of charges against Co also happened four days after he alleged in a video posted on Facebook that President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. ordered him to insert P100 billion during the bicameral conference committee in late 2024.

Clavano said that based on the September 9, 2025 inspection conducted by DPWH Secretary Vince Dizon and Oriental Mindoro Governor Bonz Dolor, the steel sheet piles used for the dike were grossly below the required standards.

Specifically, Clavano said the measurements of the steel sheet piles showed that an exposed pile length of 2.5 meters and 0.6 meters embedded in the pile cap for a total of only about 3.0 meters, far from the 12-meter specification stated in the Detailed Engineering Design of the project.

“The measured sheet pile did not meet the 12-meter specification. The material was substandard. It is highly possible that all other sheet piles used in the project were also below specification,” Clavano said.

“These findings point to a scheme that resulted in unwarranted benefits, technical falsification, and the misuse of public funds," he added.

Clavano said that since the amount malversed exceeds ?8.8 million, and in line with the law and jurisprudence, Ombudsman prosecutors have recommended no bail for the malversation charge.

In addition, he said that the Ombudsman prosecutors also filed a motion asking the Sandiganbayan to immediately raffle the cases to the anti-graft court divisions and subsequently issue warrants of arrest and hold departure order on the accused.

GMA News Online has reached out to Co and DPWH officials for comment and will be publishing them as soon as it is available. –NB/LDF, GMA Integrated News