MANILA. Interior and Local Government Secretary Jonvic Remulla said on Friday, May 29, 2026, that Senator Jinggoy Estrada is most likely to surrender in connection with the plunder and graft charges filed against him by the Office of the Ombudsman.
In an interview with reporters, Remulla revealed that he spoke with Estrada on Thursday, shortly after the Ombudsman filed charges over the senator's alleged involvement in anomalous flood control projects. “We talked yesterday. I called him and told him it was either surrender or arrest. He said he would think about it. His concern was his knee, which needs a knee replacement. So I told him it’s beyond our jurisdiction, so he should just bring it up to the Sandiganbayan,” Remulla said.
“Either way, I think most probably, he will surrender after the third time. This is the third time, so he’s already used to it,” he added.
Estrada was previously charged in April 2001 alongside his father, former President Joseph Estrada, over alleged corruption during the “jueteng” scandal. He was eventually acquitted due to insufficient evidence. From June 2014 to August 2024, Estrada was detained for his alleged involvement in the Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) scam, where he supposedly funneled P183 million of his pork barrel to fake NGOs of Janet Lim-Napoles in exchange for kickbacks. He was acquitted of plunder but convicted of one count of direct bribery and two counts of indirect bribery, a decision later reversed by the Sandiganbayan. Eleven graft charges remain pending before the anti-graft court.
On May 28, the Ombudsman filed new corruption charges against Estrada over alleged illegal budget insertions, manipulation of Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) project allocations, and bid-rigging and kickbacks tied to flood control contracts. Prosecutors claim approximately P573 million in alleged kickbacks were delivered to Estrada. The case was raffled to the 5th Division of the Sandiganbayan, and an arrest warrant is expected soon.
In a statement, Estrada vowed to exhaust all legal remedies. “At present, my lawyers are preparing the appropriate legal steps to show the irregularities in the process, as well as the evidence that was not given sufficient weight and consideration,” he said, citing a Senate Legislative Budget Research and Monitoring Office letter showing no record of budget insertion on his part, particularly in the 2025 national budget.
“Moreover, I was not given the opportunity to properly see and study the resolutions of the Department of Justice and the Ombudsman so that I could file the appropriate explanation or Motion for Reconsideration before the case was filed with the Sandiganbayan. This kind of excessive and unreasonable process has serious implications on my right to due process,” Estrada added.
“As I have said before, if this is the price that I have to pay for standing by my principles and for what I believe in, then so be it. I will continue to seek the truth and defend my name in the proper forum and in accordance with the law,” he concluded.
