Zaldy Co as Diversion: A Political Analysis of Senate-Focused Scandal and Smokescreens

 *Dr. Rodolfo John Ortiz Teope, PhD, EdD, DM

 

Introduction: A Scripted Noise in a Chaotic Democracy

 

In political strategy, diversions are not mere coincidences—they are weapons. The abrupt public appearance of House Appropriations Chair Zaldy Co, issuing a sensational confession implicating himself and others in budget manipulations, comes at a moment too convenient to ignore. Just as DPWH Undersecretary Roberto Bernardo was delivering a second testimony naming high-ranking senators in a deeper budget racket, Co took the stage—figuratively and literally—to shift the national narrative.

 

This is not unfamiliar to political observers. In fact, it follows a long-documented tactic used in crisis governance: “strategic deflection” or the “noise grenade,” wherein lesser scandals are inflated to bury larger ones (McGraw, 2019; Ziblatt & Levitsky, 2018).

 

Usec. Bernardo’s Bombshell: Senate Names Surface

 

Undersecretary Bernardo, in a follow-up exposé, directly named Senators Mark Villar, Grace Poe, and Chiz Escudero in what he described as kickback-fueled insertion machinery inside the DPWH budget system (Bernardo, 2025). He detailed how:

• These Senate insertions funded flood-control and multi-regional infrastructure projects, many of which were later flagged for anomalies.
• Contractors linked to senators allegedly coordinated with DPWH insiders to ensure approval of specific projects.
• The 2025 General Appropriations Act became a vehicle for funneling public funds through “earmarked” yet technically and ethically compromised insertions (Commission on Audit [COA], 2024).

 

This narrative directly challenges the prevailing notion that the House of Representatives is the sole culprit in the corruption chain. It exposes the Senate’s active involvement and control of the bicameral processes, especially via Senator Escudero’s budget oversight roles (Senate of the Philippines, 2024).

 

The Media Diversion: A Tactical Timeline

 

A timeline of events reveals a precision-crafted distraction:

1. Bernardo’s second testimony publicly implicates sitting senators.
2. Mainstream media begins to probe Senate insertions and questionable bicam negotiations.
3. Within hours, Zaldy Co delivers a “confession” to the media, redirecting public discourse toward FLRs and the Executive’s involvement.

 

This follows the logic of political “agenda-setting theory” (McCombs & Shaw, 1972), where attention is manipulated not necessarily by suppressing stories, but by flooding the space with louder ones.

 

The strategy is eerily similar to known “decoy operations” in politics, where a smaller scandal is timed and released to suppress the echo of a bigger one (Entman, 2007).

 

Senate Insertions and the Escudero-Co Axis

 

Evidence has now pointed to a bicam insertion scheme allegedly orchestrated by a Co–Escudero axis:

• Both were major bicameral negotiators for the 2025 national budget (Philippine Daily Inquirer, 2025).
• Both are linked to contractor networks who won controversial DPWH projects (COA, 2024).
• Both synchronized their narratives post-scandal—Co speaking, Escudero strategically silent.

 

Such alignment of budget influence and political narrative suggests not just corruption, but coordinated institutional deception.

 

Political scholars have warned that budgetary capture by political elites is one of the strongest symptoms of systemic democratic erosion (Diamond, 2019).

 

The Presidential Stand: A Case for Non-Involvement

 

Amid this controversy, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. appears to have exercised institutional restraint:

• He vetoed questionable fund releases in the 2025 GAA (Official Gazette, 2025).
• He refused to reverse his FLR policy, despite Congressional pressure (Presidential Communications Office, 2025).
• He has not been named in any corruption whistleblower report—formal or informal.

 

The President’s refusal to bend aligns with executive accountability principles in public administration: the use of veto power to ensure fiscal integrity (Rosenbloom et al., 2021). That he stands isolated in this scandal—unlike the senators—further deepens suspicion that diversion efforts are intended to protect the legislative elite, not the Palace.

 

Smokescreen Politics: Zaldy as the Fall Guy

 

Zaldy Co’s confession has gained traction, but for the wrong reasons. He appears not as a whistleblower, but a convenient proxy for collective guilt—one who absorbs media attention while deflecting scrutiny away from the more powerful.

 

Political theorist Murray Edelman (1988) coined this tactic as “symbolic reassurance,” where sacrificial figures are presented to maintain public trust in larger institutions.

 

The danger here is that the system uses controlled confessions to prevent real accountability—a strategy well-documented in authoritarian-leaning democracies where legislative corruption is systemic (Schedler, 2006).

 

Conclusion: The Senate Cannot Hide Behind Co

 

At the heart of this crisis is not Zaldy Co’s confession—but the Senate’s fingerprints on anomalous budgetary insertions. The public should not be lured into chasing the noise while ignoring the direction of the smoke.

 

Co is not the bomb.

He is the smokescreen.

The real explosion has already happened—within the Senate halls.

 

 

References

 

Bernardo, R. (2025). Testimony before the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee on DPWH anomalies [Unpublished transcript].

Commission on Audit (COA). (2024). Annual audit report: Department of Public Works and Highways. Retrieved from https://www.coa.gov.ph

Diamond, L. (2019). Ill Winds: Saving Democracy from Russian Rage, Chinese Ambition, and American Complacency. Penguin Press.

Edelman, M. (1988). Constructing the Political Spectacle. University of Chicago Press.

Entman, R. M. (2007). Framing Bias: Media in the Distribution of Power. Journal of Communication, 57(1), 163–173. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1460-2466.2006.00336.x

McCombs, M., & Shaw, D. L. (1972). The agenda-setting function of mass media. Public Opinion Quarterly, 36(2), 176–187.

McGraw, K. M. (2019). Political Scandals and Public Responses: Agenda-setting, Blame Management, and Moral Outrage. Annual Review of Political Science, 22, 273–289.

Official Gazette. (2025). Presidential veto message on the 2025 General Appropriations Act. Retrieved from https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph

Philippine Daily Inquirer. (2025, November 12). DPWH Usec implicates senators in budget insertion kickbacks. https://www.inquirer.net

Presidential Communications Office. (2025). Press release: Marcos affirms non-intervention in budget allocations. Retrieved from https://pco.gov.ph

Rosenbloom, D. H., Kravchuk, R. S., & Clerkin, R. M. (2021). Public Administration: Understanding Management, Politics, and Law in the Public Sector (9th ed.). McGraw-Hill Education.

Schedler, A. (2006). Electoral Authoritarianism: The Dynamics of Unfree Competition. Lynne Rienner Publishers.

Senate of the Philippines. (2024). Bicam Proceedings on the 2025 National Budget [Session records]. Retrieved from https://www.senate.gov.ph

Ziblatt, D., & Levitsky, S. (2018). How Democracies Die. Crown Publishing Group.

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 *About the author:

Dr. Rodolfo “John” Ortiz Teope is a distinguished Filipino academic, public intellectual, and advocate for civic education and public safety, whose work spans local academies and international security circles. With a career rooted in teaching, research, policy, and public engagement, he bridges theory and practice by making meaningful contributions to academic discourse, civic education, and public policy. Dr. Teope is widely respected for his critical scholarship in education, management, economics, doctrine development, and public safety; his grassroots involvement in government and non-government organizations; his influential media presence promoting democratic values and civic consciousness; and his ethical leadership grounded in Filipino nationalism and public service. As a true public intellectual, he exemplifies how research, advocacy, governance, and education can work together in pursuit of the nation’s moral and civic mission.

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