MALACAÑANG maintained on Monday, April 27, 2026, the accuracy of President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.’s announcement on the arrest of fugitive former Ako-Bicol party-list representative Zaldy Co.
In a press conference, Palace Press Officer Undersecretary Claire Castro said there was nothing premature in the President’s announcement amid criticisms that he issued unverified information.
“Ano ba ang inanunsyo ng Pangulo? Hindi ba ang inanunsyo ng Pangulo na unang-una ay nahuli si Zaldy Co, totoo naman... nasa kustodiya ng Czech Republic, totoo naman... ang sabi ng Pangulo nakikipag-coordinate tayo sa Czech Republic, totoo naman. So anong premature doon? Walang premature doon,” she said.
(What did the President announce? Didn’t he announce that, first of all, Zaldy Co was caught—that’s true... that he is in the custody of the Czech Republic—that’s true... the President also said we are coordinating with the Czech Republic—that’s true. So what is premature there? There is nothing premature about that.)
“Pag sinabi nating nahuli na si Zaldy Co, it doesn't necessarily mean that it is an arrest. Ang nahuli na salita ay very general. So kapag nahuli, pwede nating sabihin na napahinto, naistop, naprevent sa pagkilos. At hindi mali ang Pangulo sa kanyang inulat noong April 16… Hindi po ito mali, hindi po nanggaling sa Pangulo mismo ang salitang aresto. Pero hindi rin po kinakaila ng SOJ (Secretary of Justice) that the movements of Zaldy Co were restrained to a certain extent,” she added.
(When we say Zaldy Co has been caught, it doesn't necessarily mean it is an arrest. The word “caught” is very general. So when someone is caught, we can say they were stopped, halted, or prevented from moving. And the President was not wrong in what he reported on April 16… This is not incorrect; the word “arrest” did not come from the President himself. But the Secretary of Justice also does not deny that Zaldy Co’s movements were restrained to a certain extent.)
Department of Justice spokesperson Polo Martinez earlier said Co was technically not arrested, although “there is a deprivation of liberty to a certain degree.”
Justice Secretary Fredderick Vida said in a press conference upon his arrival in the Czech Republic on Friday, April 24, that there is a possibility that Co has already been released by Czech authorities.
Vida led the Philippine delegation sent to the Czech Republic to process Co’s possible return to the country.
He said the focus of their ongoing efforts there is to reconstruct the sequence of events surrounding Co’s movements with the help of Czech authorities and determine the next steps under applicable legal processes.
Co has a standing arrest warrant issued by the Sandiganbayan over the anomalous P289 million flood control project in Naujan, Oriental Mindoro.
The former lawmaker is central to investigations into flood control anomalies after several witnesses pointed to him as a recipient of billions worth of kickbacks from anomalous projects.
Construction firm Sunwest Corporation, which was co-founded by Co, is among the top 15 construction firms that bagged 20 percent, or P100 billion, worth of flood control projects in the country from 2022 to 2025. (TPM/SunStar Philippines)