Former Ako Bicol Partylist Representative Zaldy Co cannot escape accountability by remaining overseas, Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III said, stressing that the government has legal means to pursue him despite his absence.
In a recent television interview, Sotto said Co’s decision to stay abroad would not protect him from the Senate’s investigation into the multibillion-peso flood control scandal.
“It’s not that easy. To stay a fugitive and live a different life in a different country… Although he might have a lot of money to do that, but then again, the government can find ways to go around extradition laws,” Sotto said.
Co’s lawyer, Ruy Rondain, earlier said the former lawmaker refused to return to the Philippines due to fears for his safety, claiming he was “deathly afraid.”
But Sotto dismissed that reasoning as an unacceptable excuse.
“If I believe in my client, I will tell my client to face the allegations and prove them wrong,” he said.
The 5-term lawmaker vowed that the chamber would observe due process while ensuring Co’s attendance at the Blue Ribbon Committee hearings.
“If he does not appear, we will issue a subpoena. If he does not appear and accepts the subpoena, we will issue a warrant of arrest. That’s as far as we can go,” Sotto explained.
When asked what might happen if Co relocates to a country without an extradition treaty, Sotto said it would not stop authorities from pursuing him.
“He can do all that, but there are ways of skinning the cat. There are ways of going about it also that the government may be able to do,” he added.
Co, who formerly chaired the House Appropriations Committee, has been accused by Navotas Rep. Toby Tiangco of allegedly inserting ₱13.8 billion into the 2025 national budget, most of it tied to questionable flood control projects now under investigation.