A veteran solon in the House of Representatives has hailed President Marcos' acknowledgement that there has been no evidence against Leyte 1st district Rep. Martin Romualdez as far as the flood control projects mess is concerned.
Manila 6th district Rep. Bienvenido "Benny" Abante Jr. said that so far, public narrative has been shaped largely by conjecture, online chatter, and unverified claims that fail to meet even the most basic standards of evidence.
“The President was very clear — cases are not filed for optics. They are filed to hold people accountable based on solid proof. That is how the justice system works,” Abante said in a statement Thursday, Nov 13.
“Up to now, there is no document, no signature, no transaction, and no testimony directly pointing to former Speaker Romualdez. The ICI has access to all implementing agencies. If anything existed, it would have surfaced by now,” he said, referring to the Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI).
Romualdez, the Lakas-Christian Muslim Democrats (Lakas-CMD) president, resigned as House Speaker last Sept. 17. This was in part to give the ICI the leeway it needed to properly investigate the alleged anomalies in flood mitigation projects, where House members have been implicated.
Abante added that the President’s call for evidence-based action dismisses attempts to weaponize the issue for political gain.
“Speculation is easy. Accountability requires facts. The President’s message was simple and correct: bring the evidence, and the government will act. Without it, there is no case,” he said.
The three-term Manila solon likewise voiced strong support for the administration’s anti-corruption efforts and for reforms aimed at monitoring infrastructure spending more effectively.
“We stand behind the President’s push for transparency and stronger safeguards,” Abante said. “Real reform happens when the work is focused on fixing the system, not on destroying individuals.”
The lone allegation linking Romualdez to any anomaly came from Orly Guteza, whose testimony has since been discredited after a Manila court found that he falsified the signature of the lawyer who supposedly notarized his affidavit.
Guteza also failed to return to the Department of Justice (DOJ) to verify his claims, further eroding whatever credibility his statement once had.
Following his Senate appearance, Guteza vanished and did not face the proper investigative bodies. This left behind nothing but an affidavit already ruled forged and falsified by authorities.