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Daphne Galvez - The Philippine Star
May 22, 2026 | 12:00am
The photo of the Commission on Audit's office in Quezon City.
The STAR / Michael Varcas
MANILA, Philippines — Two of three key officials of the Commission on Audit (COA) saw a decrease in their declared wealth in 2025, as shown in their statements of assets, liabilities, and net worth (SALN), copies of which were obtained by The STAR from the Office of the Ombudsman.
Chairman Gamaliel Cordoba’s net worth in 2025 shrank by P22.265 million from the P96.879 million he declared in 2024 to P74.514 million in 2025.
The reduction is mainly due to the exclusion of properties that he inherited or received through donation.
In his 2024 SALN, Cordoba declared 10 properties worth P34.746 million, the most expensive of which is a condominium unit in Mandaluyong City which he acquired in 2009 for P11.032 million.
The total also included an P8-million worth house and lot in Quezon City which he inherited in 2002, and a house and lot worth P5.509 million which was donated to him in 2013.
However, in his 2025 SALN, the sum total of his real properties shrank to P13.519 million despite declaring the same amount of properties because only three out of the 10 properties – specifically the ones he acquired -- were included in the computation. The amount of properties that were inherited or donated were excluded from the total.
Commissioner Mario Lipana also declared a decreased net worth in 2025 at P23.53 million, which was P3 million less than what he declared in 2024 of P26.53 million.
In 2024, Lipana’s real properties were worth P8.53 million, covering nine properties, the most expensive of which is a P2-million house and lot in Pasig City acquired in 2014. He also declared P18 million of cash in hand and in the bank. He declared no liabilities.
For his 2025 SALN, Lipana’s cash increased to P35 million but he listed a loan of P20,000,000 as his liability, which brought his net worth down to P23.530 million.
Lipana is under investigation by the ombudsman over his alleged involvement in the flood control scam after it was revealed during a House inquiry in September 2025 that his wife, Marilou Laurio Lipana, president and general manager of Olympus Mining and Builders Group Philippines, had nine projects with the Department of Public Works and Highways in Bulacan with total contract cost of P326.609 million involving flood control projects and farm-to-market roads.
