MARCH 17, 2026 — Former DPWH Undersecretary Roberto Bernardo testified before the Sandiganbayan that he received P130 million from resigned Ako Bicol party-list Rep. Elizaldy “Zaldy” Co. The money, described as “balato” or a “token of gratitude,” was handed over every third quarter from 2023 to 2025. Bernardo admitted the cash was coursed through DPWH Region IV-B officials, even delivered by a driver, and justified it as Co’s way of saying “thank you” to ensure projects ran smoothly.

The case involves a P289 million flood control project in Naujan, Oriental Mindoro, which prosecutors allege was riddled with falsified documents and substandard work. Co, the main accused, has been abroad since July 2025 and has refused to return, prompting the court to declare him a fugitive from justice.

Co and several DPWH officials face multiple graft charges under the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act (RA 3019) and malversation of public funds under the Revised Penal Code. The Sandiganbayan has even ordered a Writ of Preliminary Attachment against 16 real estate properties owned by Co and his wife to secure over P215 million in civil liabilities.

Flood control projects are supposed to protect communities from disasters, yet billions are siphoned off into private pockets. The result? Families wading through waist-deep water every typhoon season while politicians and bureaucrats toast to their “gratitude money.”

Corruption in infrastructure isn’t abstract. It’s the cracked bridges we cross, the unfinished floodways that leave barangays submerged, the billions lost that could have built schools or hospitals. 

Bernardo’s casual admission of receiving “balato” shows how normalized graft has become in government circles.

Meanwhile, Co remains comfortably abroad while taxpayers foot the bill. The Sandiganbayan may attach his properties, but will justice ever really catch up with him?

And if the exorbitant amount of P130 million can be casually handed out as “gratitude money,” how much more of our future is really being stolen behind closed doors?

(Image: Philippine News Agency)