In a Senate hearing, two witnesses identified contractor Curlee Discaya as the one handling renovations for a property allegedly owned by former House Speaker Martin Romualdez. The testimony provides the first concrete link between Discaya and Romualdez in the ongoing flood control corruption probe. Romualdez's camp dismissed the claims as baseless hearsay.
At the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee hearing on Monday, January 19, 2026, two masked witnesses using the pseudonyms 'Maria' and 'Joy' introduced themselves as former staff of Ricco Ocampo at 30 Tamarind, South Forbes, Taguig. They testified that they were notified of eviction in January 2024. Due to the volume of items to move, they requested an extension to remove their belongings.
By February 2024, they were introduced to the new contractor, whom they identified as Curlee Discaya. The witnesses said Discaya was insistent on clearing out the old business, stating that 'Romualdez' had bought the house. During the hearing, Committee Chair Sen. Ping Lacson asked the witnesses to physically identify the contractor in the room, and they pointed to Discaya.
'Both of you are identifying that he was the one who faced you and said that the owner of the house is Speaker Romualdez and you need to leave?' Lacson asked. The witnesses affirmed. Discaya requested that the witnesses remove their masks for identification, but Lacson denied this, stating Discaya had no right to demand their identities.
'I do not remember any transaction,' Discaya denied. Should the claims be proven, this would mark the first concrete link between the Discaya family and Romualdez. However, Romualdez's lawyer Ade Fajardo described the allegations as 'logically and physically impossible' in a statement, noting no documents link Romualdez to the property and that the claims rely solely on hearsay from evicted tenants.
The incident forms part of the broader probe into irregularities in the Department of Public Works and Highways' flood control projects.
