Former Ako Bicol Rep. Zaldy Co has set political circles on fire after claiming that President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. personally pushed for his alleged ₱100-billion budget insertions to be placed under programmed appropriations — the type of funding that’s guaranteed and ready to spend.
And he didn’t stop there.
In a stunning follow-up claim, Co alleged that then Senate President Francis “Chiz” Escudero wanted even more — ₱200 billion for the 2025 national budget. According to him, Escudero succeeded: ₱150 billion under guaranteed funds, and ₱50 billion more under unprogrammed allocations.
Co revealed all these on Wednesday after posting a seven-page letter he says he sent the President back in February 2025. The timing? Explosive. The emotion? Unmistakable.
“We followed your instruction.”
In his letter, Co writes with a tone of frustration — almost resignation.
He recalls warning top officials that placing the entire ₱100-billion presidential insertion under programmed funds would spark massive backlash, especially from the education sector.
He says he told Undersecretary Adrian Bersamin, Budget Secretary Mina Pangandaman, and Usec. Jojo Cadiz exactly that.
But then came the message he claims came from the President:
“Proceed.”
“So we did,” Co writes.
It was a moment, he implies, where he felt boxed in — forced to follow orders he believed would create trouble. And now he insists he’s speaking up to “set the record straight.”
A Growing Storm
Co is not just making allegations — he’s also facing his own battles.
He’s currently charged for alleged irregularities involving flood control and road dike projects. A warrant for his arrest has even been issued.
But instead of keeping his head down, Co has taken to social media, releasing videos accusing Marcos and his allies of orchestrating budget insertions and allegedly receiving billions in kickbacks.
The President?
He has refused to respond in detail. Instead, he challenged Co to come home and face the cases against him.
Escudero’s Alleged Demands
Co claims the conflict intensified when Senate President Escudero allegedly demanded ₱200 billion in allocations for the 2025 budget.
He says Chiz wanted:
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₱150B under programmed funds
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₱50B under unprogrammed funds
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₱145B of that channeled straight to DPWH
That amount, Co stresses with alarm, would make the DPWH budget bigger than education — a violation of the Constitution’s mandate to prioritize education.
When Co pushed back, he claims Escudero threatened to delay the budget until March 2025, forcing a reenacted budget.
Co says he informed Secretary Pangandaman, who then relayed the President’s response:
“Don’t ever think about it.”
At that point, Co says the House had no choice but to give in.
A Pattern, He Says
Co also contrasts this chaos with previous years when he worked with former Senate finance chair Sen. Sonny Angara. Those years, he says, were calmer. “All OP insertions,” he recalls Angara saying, “are typically included in unprogrammed appropriations.”
He points to past budgets to support this:
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2023: ₱75B of the OP’s ₱100B went to unprogrammed funds
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2024: Cabinet wanted more for guaranteed funds — so ₱40B was programmed, ₱60B unprogrammed
This, Co insists, shows he and Speaker Martin Romualdez never tinkered with the President’s allocations.
“There was nothing for us to get,” he writes. “Most of the OP’s allocations were unprogrammed and unfunded.”
A Final Twist
Hours before Co posted his letter on Wednesday, President Marcos made his own revelation: that there was allegedly an attempt to blackmail him into stopping the cancellation of Co’s passport.
The drama between the former lawmaker and the President now feels less like political disagreement — and more like a showdown.
Both sides standing firm.
Both sides making stunning claims.
And the public watching, wondering who will blink first.
