Martin Romualdez resigns as Speaker of the House

On September 17, 2025, Ferdinand Martin Romualdez announced his resignation as Speaker of the House of Representatives. The resignation came nine days after contractor Curlee Discaya implicated him by name at a House inquiry into the flood control plunder scheme, and the day after the Anti-Money Laundering Council issued its first freeze order touching contractors and engineers tied to the same investigation. Romualdez retained his seat as the Representative of the 1st District of Leyte and his role as leader of the Lakas-CMD majority bloc. His resignation statement framed the move as preserving the dignity of the Office of the Speaker and enabling the institution to focus on legislative work while the allegations against him were investigated. The resignation triggered a leadership reorganization in the House and a succession contest that played out over the following month. It also marked the first major political consequence of the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee's "Philippines Under Water" inquiry, foreshadowing a series of cabinet-level resignations and the eventual Ombudsman complaint filed in April 2026.