Supporters of former House Speaker Martin Romualdez are calling for fairness following the explosive testimony of former DPWH Bulacan 1st District Engineer Henry Alcantara during a Sandiganbayan bail hearing. 

Alcantara openly admitted that the controversial infrastructure kickback scheme was already deeply embedded in the system well before Romualdez assumed the speakership and former Representative Zaldy Co took over the House Appropriations Committee in 2022.

"Kalakaran na 'to," Alcantara stated, validating what Romualdez's defenders have maintained all along: that the former Speaker is being unfairly singled out for systemic flaws and an institutional "tradition" that has plagued agency projects for years.

While critics have rushed to judgment following recent legal developments, allies emphasize that Alcantara's timeline shifts the narrative. According to his own testimony, he was already deeply involved in these budget setups as early as September 2021. 

Romualdez's support base argues that pinning decades-old bureaucratic corruption on the former leader is politically motivated, insisting that the truth about the long-standing kalakaran (standard practice) will ultimately clear his name.