No pending criminal, admin cases vs ex-Pangasinan Rep Toff De Venecia -- Ombudsman
The Office of the Ombudsman (OMB) has certified that former Pangasinan 4th District Rep. Christopher "Toff" P. De Venecia has no pending criminal and administrative cases.
In a certification issued last Dec. 2, the OMB said: "This certifies that our records show that as of Dec. 2, 2025, Christopher Perez De Venecia... has no pending criminal and administrative cases with the Office of the Ombudsman."
The certification was signed by Graft Investigation Officer II Sally R. Gimpayan.
The clearance was issued after a complaint was filed before the OMB against De Venecia on the P286 million flood-control projects in Sual, Pangasinan.
Samahan ng mga Operator at Tsuper ng Pangasinan, Inc. president and journalist Jaime Aquino accused De Venecia, Sual Mayor Liseldo Calugay, and several others of plunder, malversation, gross neglect of duty, grave misconduct, dishonesty, inefficiency, and incompetence in performance of official duties.
The two projects were identified in the complaint as the slope protection project in Abenoling River in Sitio Dalumat and a river bank protection project in Barangay Sto. Tomas Casibong on the Angalacan River.
De Venecia had slammed the accusation as "false and unfounded" and pointed out that "this case was filed without any substantiating facts."
He said: "The people’s trust has always been my guiding principle. I remain steadfast in my commitment to integrity, transparency, and the welfare of our communities, and I will not allow false accusations from discredited sources, filed without evidence, to divert our focus from serving the public good."
De Venecia also said that “while the call for transparency and accountability should still remain the priority of every Filipino, we must also remain vigilant against unscrupulous individuals who attempt to take advantage of the outrage, and file nuisance cases hoping for a payday.”
Published reports stated that in 2022, Aquino was expelled as a member by the National Press Club of the Philippines “for fabricating complaints against public officials.”