AFTER BEING ARRESTED, charged and dismissed from service, Engineer Abelardo Calalo has nothing more to lose. Or so we thought.
Calalo, the district engineer who was hauled behind bars for allegedly trying to bribe Batangas 1st District Rep. Leandro Leviste, has finally decided to speak up.
In his counter-affidavit, Calalo claimed that it was the neophyte congressman’s mother — Senator Loren Legarda, through Rep. Jojo Ang, who actually instructed him to raise funds from private contractors.
Calalo swore under oath that the charges against him were a “twisting of the truth”, and that he “vehemently denies” ever attempting to bribe Leviste.
COUNTER AFFIDAVIT
According to Calalo, he was summoned to a meeting with Legarda and Ang to discuss the 2026 budget. During the meeting, Calalo claimed that Legarda herself told him to “take care” of her projects.
Among seasoned politicians (like Legarda), “take care” is code for loyalty — or more bluntly, “ensuring the kickback machinery keeps humming.”
Calalo recounted that on May 28, 2025, Ang instructed him to solicit donations from contractors “as a sign of support” for Leviste’s projects. By August 5, Ang followed up again, pushing him to get contributions from contractors.
On August 22, 2025, during another meeting, Calalo said Leviste cornered him and asked for the amount of “donations,” for which he allegedly gave “hypothetical estimates” — P360 million for a 10% cut, and P180 million for 5%.
DENIES ENTRAPMENT
On August 25, he was again allegedly asked by Leviste to drop by the congressional district office, to bring the “donations.”
When he arrived at the district office, the young legislator immediately asked for the donation. It was then that Leviste allegedly pressured him to “fetch the money from his car.”
It was not clear though whether the car mentioned in the affidavit belongs to him or that of the congressman.
But before he could even hand anything over, Calalo claimed that police swooped in and arrested him.
According to Calalo, entrapment never took place, even as he claimed that the money was never accepted.
“I vehemently deny that I offered any bribe… I was made a dispensable instrument to serve what is supposed to be a legitimate cause.”
As of press time, neither Leviste nor Legarda issued a statement regarding Calalo’s counter allegation.