Marcos: Philippines working with Portugal for Zaldy Co return

MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. said Tuesday, March 10, that the Philippines is working with Portuguese authorities in trying to bring home resigned legislator Zaldy Co, who faces several cases related to flood control projects.

“You cannot bring him home because…that’s just not the way it works. We have to ask the assistance of the country where he is in, which is presently Portugal,” Marcos told media in New York as he was wrapping up a two-day working visit.

Co was an ally of the President and chairperson of the powerful appropriations committee of the House of Representatives, or the panel that initiates deliberations on the government’s budget.

Co, a contractor who retained beneficial ownership of his companies despite holding office, is accused of pocketing public funds through flood control projects. Anti-graft court Sandiganbayan has since ordered his arrest and the seizure of his properties with an estimated value of over P215 million.

He has been in hiding since the start of the 20th Congress, or as allegations of corruption started being thrown against him. As the flood control corruption scandal, first made public by Marcos himself, Co left the country. He was long believed to be in hiding in Portugal.

Asked about the seeming delay in bringing Co back to the Philippines to face cases, Marcos said Manila has placed a red notice before Interpol and is working with Portuguese officials.

“You do not send your own police to go and pick him up kasi wala namang jurisdiction ang police doon sa kung saan ‘yung ibang bansa (because we don’t have jurisdiction there). So, they cannot arrest anyone. So, it will have to be with the assistance of the hosting country,” he added.

Since fleeing the country, Co has turned into Marcos’ accuser and has claimed that the President and his close associates, including relatives in Congress, either had knowledge of corruption schemes or made money from those schemes themselves.

Marcos also said the Independent Commission for Infrastructure, an ah hoc body he created to probe a decade’s worth of infrastructure projects, is done with “much of their work.”

“And the next part of this process is that they will send those — the information, they will send it to DOJ and the Ombudsman, depending on which is the appropriate body,” he said.

“Now, what will happen afterwards is, let us see what else that they can do but for now their brief has already been fulfilled,” the President added. – Rappler.com