DFA awaits court order to cancel Zaldy Co's passport amid graft charges

The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) is awaiting a court order to cancel the passport of former Ako Bicol Representative Zaldy Co, who is implicated in a multi-billion peso flood control corruption scandal.

Passport cancellations can only be done upon receiving a court order from a competent Philippine court, as stipulated by the New Philippine Passport Act.

Arrest warrants have been issued by the Sandiganbayan against Co and 17 others, including Public Works officials and individuals from Sunwest Corp., who are accused of receiving kickbacks from flood control projects.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. ordered the immediate enforcement of the arrest warrants, stating the cases are based on solid evidence and that no special treatment would be given.

Co, who denied the allegations and resigned from his congressional post, left the Philippines in August and is the only accused confirmed to be abroad, with his exact location unknown.

The DFA will comply with any valid court order, but Co's passport remains active as none has been received yet.