DFA says bringing back Zaldy Co isn't theirs alone to do

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Philstar.com

February 18, 2026 | 5:52pm

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Foreign Affairs has clarified Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla's suggestion that his agency has stepped back from efforts to bring home fugitive ex-congressman Zaldy Co, saying the task of arresting him requires more than just coordination among states.

In a statement read at a Malacañang press briefing on Wednesday, February 18, the DFA said Co's arrest and repatriation involves "coordinated law enforcement and judicial processes, particularly INTERPOL coordination" — work that falls outside diplomatic channels.

"Secretary Remulla's view that the matter rests solely with the DFA does not fully capture this whole-of-government approach, which requires joint action across concerned government agencies," the DFA said.

Co was last reported to be hiding in Sweden. 

Remulla said yesterday that Co's case was no longer under the DILG and that it is "already with the DFA."

Palace Press Officer Claire Castro, who read the DFA statement, said she had spoken with DILG officials who clarified that Remulla only meant the DFA would handle state-to-state talks with the country where Co may be located, not that law enforcement was standing down.

Co, former Ako Bicol party-list representative, has been abroad since August 2025, initially citing medical treatment. He faces charges of graft and non-bailable malversation of public funds before at least two Sandiganbayan divisions tied to a P289.5-million anomalous flood control project in Naujan, Oriental Mindoro.

His camp denied in early February that he had sent feelers to the government to negotiate his return.