Sen. Rodante Marcoleta tore into the recantation of retired Marine MSgt. Orly Guteza, insisting that Guteza’s original testimony before the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee carried far more weight because it directly implicated former House Speaker Martin Romualdez in the flood‑control scandal.
Marcoleta pointed to Guteza’s Sept. 25, 2025 testimony, where the ex‑Marine detailed his alleged personal knowledge of cash movements tied to flood‑control projects and named Romualdez, former Rep. Rep. Zaldy Co, and others.
“It was all valor when he exposed the plunder of the people’s money despite the risk to his personal safety and freedom,” Marcoleta said.
But Guteza later reversed himself in a statement dated Aug. 19, 2026, withdrawing his allegations and accusing Marcoleta and former Rep. Mike Defensor of helping prepare his earlier account.
Marcoleta denied those claims outright and questioned the circumstances of the recantation. He cited a November 2025 video of Guteza speaking with his wife, where Guteza admitted a separate statement he signed was not his own and voiced fears for his family’s safety.
Marcoleta said the accusations in Guteza’s recantation were “both physically implausible and/or psychologically improbable,” adding it was more likely that threats against Guteza’s wife and children forced him to sign what he called an outrageous statement.
The dispute comes as allegations mount that witnesses were offered huge sums to backtrack. Former Marine George Villalon Jr. alleged members of the group were offered ₱20 million to ₱25 million each to recant. Lawyer Levito Baligod, the Marines’ counsel, disclosed evidence of an ₱8‑million offer tied to efforts to reverse witness statements.
The Ombudsman is pressing ahead with a preliminary investigation into Romualdez over some of the most serious corruption charges in the flood‑control scandal—plunder, direct and indirect bribery, violations of the Anti‑Graft and Corrupt Practices Act, and money laundering—linked to a ₱56‑billion kickback scheme.
The probe remains active despite multiple recantations. The Ombudsman has made clear that recantations do not erase sworn testimony, with Assistant Ombudsman Mico Clavano saying investigators will weigh both versions and determine which is backed by evidence.
Marcoleta’s statement underscores the deep dispute over Guteza’s conflicting accounts as the Ombudsman intensifies its investigation into Romualdez’s flood‑control corruption, exposing the former Speaker’s desperate maneuvers to escape accountability.
