Navotas City lone district Rep. Toby Tiangco has threatened to break up politically with President Marcos if he senses any effort from the latter to protect Leyte 1st district Rep. Martin Romualdez, even as incriminating evidence has yet to be found against the former House Speaker.

“Kailangan niyang patunayan na hindi niya poproteksyonan si Martin Romualdez...Pag naramdaman ko na poproteksiyunan niya si Martin Romualdez, maghihiwalay na kami politically,” a stern-faced Tiangco said regarding President Marcos in a recent online interview.

(He needs to prove that he is not protecting Martin Romualdez...If I feel that he is protecting Martin Romualdez, I will break up with him politically.)

But the latest developments have shown that not even the Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI)--the body created by Malacañang to look into the alleged massive corruption in government-funded flood control projects--couldn't find any guilt or liability on Romualdez's part.

Tiangco--who is a part of House majority bloc under current Speaker Faustino "Bojie" Dy III of Isabela's 6th district--expressed displeasure over President Marcos' closeness to his cousin, Romualdez.

“Masyado siyang tiwala kay Speaker Martin Romualdez so sa tingin ko ‘yan yung problema (He has too much trust in Speaker Martin Romualdez and I think that's the problem)," said the founder of Partido Navoteño, the ruling local political party in the city of Navotas.

Marcos is the chairman of Partido Federal ng Pilipinas (PFP), the default ruling party. Romualdez, on the other hand sits as president of the Lakas-Christian Muslim Democrats (Lakas-CMD), the recognized dominant party in the country and the muscle of the administration coalition.

According to Tiangco, the President must demonstrate that he is not shielding the Leyte congressman.

On Monday, lawyer Ade Fajardo underscored that the ICI had no reason to pin down Romualdez even as it forwarded its case referral to the Office of the Ombudsman.

“Importantly, the ICI explicitly states that the Referral ‘is issued without any finding or conclusion of guilt or liability on the part of former Speaker Romualdez'. This clear statement reinforces our confidence in the Commission’s impartiality and reinforces the constitutional role of the Ombudsman as the sole authority empowered to make determination on accountability,” Fajardo said based on the referral.

Despite all of these, Tiangco insisted that the President must show that he will allow a full-blown investigation.

Pressed on the allegations of former Ako Bico Party-list Rep. Zaldy Co on the flood control projects mess, Tiangco noted that Co's claims were mixed, though he did not cite any proof linking Romualdez to corruption. 

The Navotas solon--who reporteldy eyed the Speakership at the start of the ongoing 20th Congress--also offered no direct proof or testimony implicating Romualdez in any irregularity.

Romualdez was elected Speaker in the current Congress and in the previous 19th Congress. He resigned from the top post in the House of Representatives on Sept. 17 and subsequently submitted himself to the investigation of the ICI.