The country is no stranger to political betrayals, shifting alliances, and partnership blow backs. But the latest chapter of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and former House Speaker Martin Romualdez’s political relationship presents a fraught situation within blood ties and potentially huge political ramifications.
From its early beginnings to the ongoing flood corruption scandal, here’s a look into their political relationship and the events that led to Romualdez facing arrest for plunder charges.
Romualdez’s Early Beginnings in Politics
The relationship of the two traces back to their parents. The president’s mother, former First Lady Imelda Marcos, is the sibling of Romualdez’s father, former Leyte Governor Benjamin “Kokoy” Romualdez — making them first cousins and tying their relationship tightly into their political dynasty.
Romualdez’s political career began in the early 1990s as the president of the Kabataang Barangay in Tolosa, Leyte. He later became the First District Representative of Leyte from 2007 to 2016 before eyeing a senatorial seat in 2016 under the Lakas-CMD party-list. Although he fell three ranks short of winning a bid, he was able to reclaim his congressional seat, serving as the House Majority Leader from 2016 to 2022.
The Romualdez-Marcos clan heightened consolidation after the 2022 presidential elections.
Romualdez as House Speaker
When Marcos first took office as president of the Philippines, he positioned his first cousin, Romualdez, as one of the administration’s key figures in Congress. 283 members of the House of Representatives voted for him as the House Speaker, and he ran unopposed.
For the first few years of the Marcos administration, the two appeared completely politically aligned, with Romualdez playing a central role in advancing the administration’s legislative agenda. He was a strong backer of the president in many of his big policy shifts and plans, such as the ban on POGO operations in 2024 and the trillion-peso budget that was passed for the same year.
However, everything took a slow turn when the administration’s UniTeam coalition began showing cracks following former President Rodrigo Duterte’s insults against Marcos and Vice President Sara Duterte‘s resignation as the Department of Education (DepEd) Secretary. The vice president had even previously blurted an alleged threat against both Marcos and Romualdez, as well as the First Lady Liza Araneta Marcos, for which Duterte later faced an arrest warrant before posting bail. The threat also stemmed from the first formal set of impeachment complaints lodged against Duterte in 2024 under Romualdez’s speakership.
The Start of the Scandal
Then came the pivotal year of 2025, when Marcos called for an audit of the flood control projects under his administration during his fourth State of the Nation Address (SONA). The president addressed it amid the brewing Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) flood control fiasco, which pushed investigations into allegations of corruption among contractors, businessmen, and politicians alike to begin. His cousin was later accused of having benefited from the dirty money.
On September 17 of that year, Romualdez resigned from his post after being caught in the middle of allegations linking him to corruption issues and budget insertions.
“Today, with a full heart and a clear conscience, I tender my resignation as Speaker of the House of Representatives. I do this so that the Independent Commission on Infrastructure may pursue its mandate freely and fully. Without doubt, without interference, and without undue influence,” he said in his speech. Romualdez also referenced his cousin’s SONA speech on how no one is above scrutiny and that he echoes the call for accountability.
During Marcos’ 2026 SONA, he once again made clear that his obligations as head of state would take precedence over family and personal relationships. “Masakit man sa akin ito, ngunit kailangan nating gawin ang tama. Hindi ako pangulo ng pamilya. Hindi ako pangulo ng aking kaibigan. Ako ay pangulo ng Pilipinas,” Marcos said.
While both remain cordial, it’s the questions from the critics and the media that open an analysis into whether their relationship remains tight or has already been flailing.
The Arrest Served
There remains no clear resolution to the overall flood controversy yet, but new developments surfaced in mid-2026 after the Office of the Ombudsman officially issued a non-bailable warrant of arrest against Romualdez, former Ako Bicol Rep. Zaldy Co, and two others for a P7.44 billion plunder case. The former House Speaker allegedly received the billion-peso kickback from over 15 transactions with contractors and other flood control entities, accumulated from 2022 to 2025.
His warrant of arrest was presented on September 7 at Cardinal Santos Medical Center in San Juan City, where he was confined following a “cardiovascular event” and “unstable blood pressure.”
Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Jonvic Remulla, meanwhile, said in an ANC interview that the arrest of Romualdez “really hurts” the president. Remulla clarified that Marcos has no plans to interfere, nor did he give any orders for preferential treatment for his cousin, whom he treats as a brother.
As of this writing, Marcos has not released any official statement regarding the arrest.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
They are first cousins. President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr’s mother, former First Lady Imelda Marcos, is the sibling of Martin Romualdez’s father, former Leyte Governor Benjamin “Kokoy” Romualdez.
Romualdez resigned from his post in September 2025 after allegations linking him to the flood control corruption scandal.
The Office of the Ombudsman issued a non-bailable warrant of arrest against Romualdez, former Ako Bicol Rep. Zaldy Co, and two others for a P7.44 billion plunder case. Romualdez allegedly received the billion-peso kickback from over 15 transactions with contractors and other flood control entities, accumulated from 2022 to 2025.
No official statement has been posted yet, but the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Jonvic Remulla said in an interview that the arrest “really hurts” the president, who treated Romualdez like a brother.
Marcos called for an audit of the flood control projects under his administration during his fourth State of the Nation Address (SONA) in 2025. The president addressed it amid the already brewing Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) flood control fiasco, which probed contractors, businessmen, and politicians alike.
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