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Marc Jayson Cayabyab - The Philippine Star
April 17, 2026 | 12:00am
MANILA, Philippines — Two more senators have joined Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo Lacson in signing the draft report of the Blue Ribbon committee on its investigation of the multibillion-peso flood control mess.
This makes a total of six signatures of senators, close to the required nine – or a majority of the 17-member committee – for Lacson to report it to the plenary so they can discuss on the floor the panel’s recommendations to file corruption charges against former and sitting senators and members of the House of Representatives.
The latest signatures came from Senate President Vicente Sotto III – who is an ex officio member – and Blue Ribbon vice chair Sen. Erwin Tulfo.
Lacson said he expects two more senators to affix their signatures, although he did not name them. If it pushes through, this will put the senators’ names on the report at eight, just one signature shy of the needed number.
Lacson as Blue RIbbon chair had suspended succeeding hearings so he could gather more support for the draft report, which was a result of a series of hearings last year on corruption in government’s flood control projects.
Lacson said that some majority senators who are members of the anti-graft panel are hesitating on signing the report upon the prodding of some senators from the minority bloc.
These minority senators pressuring them were formerly in the majority during the previous leadership, Lacson said. Before Sotto, the Senate president was Sen. Francis Escudero.
The nine-member minority is composed of Escudero, minority leader Alan Peter Cayetano, Robin Padilla, Rodante Marcoleta, Imee Marcos, Jinggoy Estrada, Bong Go, Ronald dela Rosa and Joel Villanueva.
Of the minority, Escudero, Estrada and Villanueva were recommended to be investigated and charged by the Blue Ribbon after they were dragged in the flood control anomaly by former public works undersecretary Roberto Bernardo and dismissed district engineer Henry Alcantara. Both are now under the witness protection program.
“One of the reasons why the other majority members have not signed or at least reluctant to do so is that they were being ‘requested’ by some of their former majority bloc colleagues,” Lacson said.
Lacson said he would not beg for the other Blue Ribbon members to sign the report out of respect for their decision.
“I told SP Sotto earlier that I won’t plead with our fellow BRC members to affix their signatures on the partial committee report because I respect their individual decisions, whatever reasons they have in refusing to sign. Hence, SP Sotto promised to help in that regard,” Lacson said.
The other Blue Ribbon members who had signed the report are Lacson as chair, and Senators Bam Aquino, Risa Hontiveros and Francis Pangilinan.
Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel Zubiri, and Senators Sherwin Gatchalian and JV Ejercito had signed it, but later withdrew their names, saying they needed more time to study the draft report. It remains to be seen if they will sign it this time.
The other Blue Ribbon members who have yet to sign the report months after it was routed are majority bloc senators Pia Cayetano, Lito Lapid, Loren Legarda, Raffy Tulfo, Mark Villar; and minority senators Alan Cayetano, Marcoleta, Villanueva, Estrada, Go, Marcos and Padilla.
Lacson said he does not expect any minority senators to sign it.
Besides Escudero, Estrada and Villanueva, the Blue Ribbon also recommended criminal charges against former senator Ramon Revilla Jr. (already detained for a malversation case before the Sandiganbayan); fugitive ex-Ako Bicol congressman Zaldy Co, former Caloocan City representative Mitch Cajayon-Uy; and other former Cabinet officials behind the alleged flood control budget insertions.
