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Helen Flores - The Philippine Star
May 25, 2026 | 12:00am
Sen. Rodante Marcoleta on February 9, 2026.
STAR / Ryan Baldemor
MANILA, Philippines — Malacañang distanced itself from the recommendation of the Office of the Ombudsman’s Field Investigation Bureau to file plunder and bribery charges against Sen. Rodante Marcoleta over alleged campaign donations amounting to P75 million.
In an interview with dzMM yesterday, Presidential Communications Undersecretary Claire Castro said the executive cannot give orders to the ombudsman, which is an independent body.
“They will again claim that this is political persecution… We want the people to know… This evidence did not come from the administration, it came directly from Senator Marcoleta,” she said, citing the senator’s submitted statement of contributions and expenditures (SOCE) and statement of assets, liabilities, and net worth (SALN).
“He submitted his SOCE and SALN. When he showed his SALN, netizens, the media themselves scrutinized his SALN,” she said.
In a complaint-affidavit dated May 18, investigators recommended that Marcoleta, former Quezon City congressman Mike Defensor, Joseph Varias Espiritu and Aristotle Baluyut Viray be indicted for plunder under Republic Act 7080 and for violation of Presidential Decree No. 46, which prohibits public officials from receiving gifts.
Ombudsman investigators also recommended that Marcoleta be charged with indirect bribery.
The recommendation stemmed from a previous case last year at the Commission on Elections (Comelec) where Marcoleta was investigated for non-disclosure of the donation in his SOCE.
Investigators said the amount allegedly received by Marcoleta exceeded the P50-million threshold required for plunder charges.
They also noted that the alleged P75-million donation was not reflected in Marcoleta’s SALN submitted to the Senate as of June 30 last year.
During the Comelec investigation, Marcoleta admitted to receiving three separate donations from Defensor, Espiritu and Baluyut in January 2025 totaling P75 million.
Defensor reportedly donated P30 million, while Espiritu and Viray donated P25 million and P20 million.
Meanwhile, Comelec said it is ready to coordinate with the ombudsman in its investigation.
Comelec Chairperson George Garcia said the commission’s motu proprio probe into the senator has been dismissed after it found no election offense, noting that the alleged donations were made before the official campaign period for the 2025 elections began.
“With regard to reviving the case, the Comelec has not yet considered it. The poll body has also not received any Motion for Reconsideration,” Garcia said in a statement on Saturday. — Christine Boton
