Ombudsman Remulla's Year-One Scorecard: 39 Flood Control Cases, 52 Accused, and No Convictions Mentioned in the Report

**Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla marked his first year in office on Monday with a tally of 39 flood control cases and 52 people charged. What the tally leaves out is any conviction.** Remulla delivered his first annual address on Oct. 12 at the Office of the Ombudsman auditorium, a year after taking his oath amid public outrage over anomalies in flood control spending, according to the Daily Tribune's Sean A. Magbanua. Of the 39 cases, 35 are before the Sandiganbayan and four are before regional trial courts, the Tribune reported. ## The numbers The cases break down into two plunder cases, four malversation cases, and 33 violations of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act, per the Tribune. In a second Tribune report, the 52 accused include one incumbent senator and one former senator, four House members including a former Speaker, one former Cabinet secretary, 33 Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) personnel and eight private contractors. The report names Sen. Rodante Marcoleta, former Sen. Ramon Revilla Jr. and former House Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez among them. Remulla said some of the accused are in custody while law enforcement tracks the rest, according to the Tribune. The coverage gives no count of how many are detained and how many are at large. "The Flood Control Scandal shocked our nation," Remulla said, as quoted by the Tribune. "Corruption does not only steal from the treasury. It steals from the economy." He also said that no one would be shielded: "Not behind your position, not behind your money, not behind your connections, and not across any border." ## What the report does not say The Tribune's account of the address reports no convictions in any of the 39 cases. Filing a case is the start of the process, not the end. A year in, the headline figure is how many people have been charged, not how many have been held to account by a court. Neither Tribune report says how much money the 39 cases cover, or how many of the accused are still at large. ## SALN access Remulla also pointed to transparency changes. The requirement that officials consent before their Statements of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALN) are released was removed. "We ended that," he said, per the Tribune. The Ombudsman has since approved 1,770 SALN requests, with sensitive personal information redacted under the Data Privacy Act. "The wealth of a public servant is not a private matter," Remulla said. The office also said 60 investigators completed a Field Investigation Course covering forensic asset tracing, digital evidence preservation and site inspection protocols. A separate Tribune report from Sept. 19 said the office plans to hire up to 261 more lawyers; the first report also notes 60 lawyers were hired in 2026. ## Context Pulpulitiko has tracked the Ombudsman's flood control docket in recent weeks, including Remulla's preparation of a second case against the Yap brothers in Benguet and the Sandiganbayan bail hearings of former Speaker Romualdez. Sen. Marcoleta's plunder trial has reached the defense stage. The Senate is also weighing a bill to give the Ombudsman its own marshal service with arrest powers. Those are bigger sticks, but the scorecard so far counts charges rather than verdicts. *Analysis: Taking the Ombudsman's own numbers at face value, the first year was about building cases. The test of the second year is whether any of the 39 reach a verdict.* ## Sources - Sean A. Magbanua, "Remulla reports 39 flood control cases in first year as Ombudsman," Daily Tribune, Oct. 12, 2026 — https://tribune.net.ph/2026/10/12/remulla-reports-39-flood-control-cases-in-first-year-as-ombudsman - Sean A. Magbanua, "Boying marks first year as Ombudsman," Daily Tribune, Oct. 13, 2026 — https://tribune.net.ph/2026/10/12/boying-marks-first-year-as-ombudsman