Marcos’ cousin Romualdez pleads not guilty of plundering flood project funds

THE lawmaker cousin of Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. pleaded not guilty to a plunder charge in a corruption scandal involving flood control projects.

Former House Speaker Martin Romualdez, on a wheelchair wearing a yellow detainee shirt and blue jacket, entered his plea before the Sandiganbayan anti-graft court via video conference, days after he was transferred to a jail from a hospital.

Romualdez — among the high-profile personalities to be arrested in a multi-billion peso corruption scandal — is accused of having a role in the misuse of 7.4 billion pesos (US$118 million) in public funds meant to mitigate flooding in the typhoon-prone country. He earlier denied wrongdoing.

The graft scandal, which Marcos exposed in a national address last year, has paralysed government spending and dragged Philippine economic growth to its weakest pace since 2009, excluding the pandemic. BLOOMBERG