Lawyer files Omnibus Motion vs. Escudero; Reveals contractor...

AN Omnibus motion was filed at the Senate Ethics Committee by a lawyer, claiming that the relationship between Senator Francis ‘Chiz’ Escudero and contractor Roberto Lubiano was already ‘transactional’ during Escudero’s tenure as Governor of Sorsogon from 2019-2022.

The motion comes at the wake of the Senate’s halt of the flood control scandal hearings, as the Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) has maintained closed-door hearings and two weeks after an ethics complaint was filed against Escudero by lawyer Eldrige Marvin Aceron.

Aceron said public records show that while Escudero served as Governor of Sorsogon, Lubiano’s Metroways Health Care and Medical System won government contracts in 2021. From December 2021 to May 2022, Lubiano donated P30,000,000 to Escudero’s senatorial campaign. From 2022 to 2025, Lubiano’s Centerways Construction won a total of P16,670,000,000 in Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) contracts concentrated in Sorsogon.

The lawyer pointed out that “This is not a case of a politician accepting a donation from a friend, then that friend’s company coincidentally winning contracts later. This is a case of a contractor winning government contracts under a Governor’s administration, that contractor then donating ₱30 million to that Governor’s Senate campaign, and that contractor’s other companies then winning billions more after the Governor becomes Senator.”

Commission on Elections (Comelec) Chairman George Garcia’s public statements on October 8, 2025 said that Escudero submitted an affidavit stating he “believed” the ₱30 million-donation was from “personal funds” and accepted it based on friendship with Engineer Lubiano.

“That defense is precisely why I documented the ₱35,070,000 accounting discrepancy in Centerways’ SEC filings The corporate books cannot verify Senator Escudero’s belief. When a sitting Senator accepts ₱30 million from a contractor-owner whose companies were winning government contracts under his own administration, ‘I trusted my friend’ is not sufficient due diligence under RA 6713 Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees,” Aceron stated.

Centerways Construction filed three different versions of their 2022 Annual Financial Statements with the SEC: The 2023 filing showed retained Earnings of ₱315,146,828; the 2024 filing showed Retained Earnings of ₱280,076,828 (restated), and the 2025 filing showed Retained Earnings of ₱280,076,828 (restated). Thus, ₱35,070,000 vanished from retained earnings between the first and second filing—during the exact period of the ₱30 million-donation—with no explanation provided under Philippine Accounting Standard (PAS).

According to the Omnibus Motion, Lubiano also owns 91% of Metroways Health Care and Medical System, Inc., founded in 2021 and public records and social media documentation confirm the company won government contracts during Escudero’s governorship, including medical supplies and equipment during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Omnibus Motion specifically asks the Senate Ethics Committee to expedite the referral of the complaint to Sen. Escudero with a clear deadline for a response and issue subpoenas for Centerways Construction’s complete financial records, Metroways Health Care’s complete financial records, Lubiano’s personal financial records, BIR records showing dividend declarations and shareholder transactions, and Provincial Government of Sorsogon records from 2019 to 2022 showing all contracts awarded to both companies.

It also asks the Ethics Committee to conduct a hearing in order to determine whether “good faith belief” satisfies due diligence requirements under RA 6713; how Sen. Escuero verified the Lubiano’s source of the donation before he accepted it; how the ₱35M accounting discrepancy relates to the “personal funds” claim, and whether the relationship was already transactional during the governorship.

Efforts to get the side of Escudero on the said motion proved futile.