Ombudsman Boying Remulla vowed to pursue the facts after the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism (PCIJ) labeled Ilocos Norte 1st District Representative Sandro Marcos and Leyte 1st District Representative Martin Romualdez as “pork barrel kings” in a November report.
The PCIJ found that nearly ₱1.2 trillion in “allocable” funds — the new form of pork barrel — were distributed to the two lawmakers from 2023 to 2025, with Sandro Marcos receiving ₱15.8 billion and Romualdez ₱14.4 billion over the three years.
“Follow the evidence. Where the evidence leads us, we’ll have to go. Hindi na kami mamimili niyan. Where the evidence leads us, we will go there. We will bring it to the proper forum,” Remulla told ABS-CBN News Channel.
According to the PCIJ, “allocables” differ from the old Priority Development Assistance Funds (PDAF), as total amounts are determined by the executive while lawmakers decide how the funds are spent. PDAF, also known as pork barrel, was declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court in 2013.
Civil society and watchdog groups continue to flag potential new forms of discretionary funds in the national budget.