I'm Natashya Gutierrez, an award-winning journalist and on this limited series podcast, I take you... On Assignment With Me. Join me as I explore global stories, meet trailblazers and newsmakers, and take you behind the scenes of my investigations. My journalistic curiosity meets intimacy on this assignment, and you're invited.
Why the Powerful Don't Go to Jail in the Philippines. And How to Fix It.
It has been an eventful few weeks in Philippine politics and pursuing accountability.
Martin Romualdez — former House Speaker and the President's own cousin — was arrested for plunder on September 7, 2026, over ₱7.44 billion in alleged flood control kickbacks. He's now in Payatas jail. At the same time, the Senate impeachment court is trying Vice President Sara Duterte over ₱612.5 million in confidential funds — a parallel test of whether the country's most powerful families can actually be held to account.
It looks like justice finally caught up with the powerful.
But here's the data most people don't see: fewer than 1 in 10 officials involved in corruption cases in the Philippines actually serve time. Cases drag for years. Evidence disappears. And often, the very lawyers sworn to uphold the law are the ones helping officials move and hide the money.
On this assignment, I sit down with Ted Te, human rights lawyer, law professor, former Supreme Court spokesperson, and private prosecutor in the Duterte impeachment trial, to ask the question everyone's avoiding: is this actually different, or just theater with better production values?
We talk about:
— Why plunder convictions almost never lead to prison time
— How lawyers help the powerful launder money "legally"
— Whether impeachment can ever deliver real accountability
— The flawed Philippine justice system
— What would actually need to change to fix this
🎙️ On Assignment With Me
Guest: Ted Te (@iamtedte)
#Philippines #Romualdez #Corruption #Plunder #Impeachment #SaraDuterte #Sandiganbayan #PhilippinePolitics #Accountability
26 Aug 2026
A 'Frame-Up': The Philippines' Biggest Corruption Case Just Got Complicated
Former House Speaker and the president's cousin Martin Romualdez has responded to the allegations against him - and we break it all down in this episode.
A falsified affidavit. Three recanted witnesses. A claim that the whole case was scripted as a blackmail scheme.
I summarize the 116-page Counter Affidavit Romualdez filed this month, responding to the corruption complaint we broke down last episode, and it goes after nearly every piece of evidence in it.
On this assignment, I walk through his defense point by point: he had no personal control over the flood control budget; a key witness affidavit was ruled falsified; security aides who described cash deliveries have now recanted; and why he's asking the Ombudsman to dismiss the case entirely, arguing that continuing to prosecute him would itself violate his constitutional rights.
⚠️ A note before you listen: this is one side's sworn response to the allegations. It doesn't settle the case, and the Ombudsman still has to weigh both filings before deciding whether to move forward.
📌 Follow along as this case develops. Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts, and on my social media and YouTube channels: @natashya_g
29 Jul 2026
Explained: Shocking, New Evidence in the Flood Control Scandal
Suitcases of cash. A fake money-changer. Mansions and multi-million donations around the world.
A new Supplemental Complaint-Affidavit just landed at the Philippine Office of the Ombudsman — and it adds fresh witnesses, new financial trails, and new names to the country's biggest corruption scandal.
In this episode, I break down the 104-page complaint and what the filing actually alleges against former House Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez, ex-congressman Elizaldy Co and their accomplices: a cash-kickback scheme tied to flood control projects, a network of shell companies and professional intermediaries accused of moving the money, and new financial intelligence findings that show a massive gap between declared wealth and alleged cash flows.
⚠️ A note before you listen: these are allegations contained in a legal filing, not a conviction. The respondents have not yet had the opportunity to respond to these allegations.
🎧 Subscribe on Spotify, Apple and wherever you get your podcasts: On Assignment With Me
📌 Follow along as this case develops: Subscribe to my YouTube channel and on social media @natashya_g
Check out my work and support this podcast: natashyagutierrez.com
#PhilippineNews #MartinRomualdez #floodcontrol #Corruption #Ombudsman #InvestigativeJournalism #OnAssignmentWithMe
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