Marcos picks COA chair Cordoba as new Supreme Court associate justice

CHAIR. The Commission on Appointments confirms the ad interim appointment of former telecommunications chief Gamaliel Cordoba as the new chairman of the Commission on Audit, on November 29, 2022.

Angie de Silva/Rappler

Gamaliel Cordoba was the NTC commissioner when the Duterte government pushed for ABS-CBN's shutdown and the blocking of Bulatlat's website

AT A GLANCE

• President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. appointed Gamaliel Cordoba, the chairperson of the Commission on Audit, to the Supreme Court, replacing Associate Justice Amy Lazaro-Javier who retires on November 16.
• Cordoba previously served as the commissioner of the National Telecommunications Commission, where he oversaw significant controversies including the shutdown of ABS-CBN.
• Before his roles in government, Cordoba had experience in private practice and served in various capacities, including as an undersecretary in the Office of the Presidential Adviser on Political Affairs.

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MANILA, Philippines – President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. appointed Commission on Audit (COA) chairperson Gamaliel Cordoba as his latest appointment to the Supreme Court (SC), Malacañang announced on Friday, November 13.

Palace Press Office Undersecretary Claire Castro announced Cordoba’s appointment in a news briefing.

Cordoba replaced former associate justice Amy Lazaro-Javier, an appointee of former president Rodrigo Duterte, who retires on November 16. Cordoba is Marcos’ latest appointee to the High Court.

Marcos appointed Associate Justice Raul Villanueva in 2025 and picked Rodil Zalameda as chief justice earlier in November.

Multiple sources said that Cordoba enjoys close ties to Marcos and First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos.

In 2022, Marcos appointed Cordoba as the COA chairperson, replacing Jose Calida. At the time, Cordoba took his oath before Chief Justice Alexander Gesmundo, a fellow member of the Fraternal Order of Utopia.

As the COA chief, Cordoba oversaw the constitutional commission mandated to examine and audit all accounts of the government and its agencies or instrumentalities.

Cordoba, before his COA appointment, was the long-time commissioner of the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC). He held the position from 2009 under former president Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, and was retained by former president Rodrigo Duterte.

The new SC associate justice was the NTC commissioner when the Duterte government pushed for the shutdown of media giant ABS-CBN in 2020. Amid the franchise controversy, Cordoba said that ABS-CBN had no standing penalties with the commission.

But despite this, the network’s franchise expired and was not renewed under Duterte’s watch. The shutdown led to the retrenchment of over 5,000 personnel.

It was also under Cordoba’s NTC term when the website of alternative news outfit Bulatlat was blocked by the Duterte administration. In 2022, then-national security adviser Hermogenes Esperon Jr. requested Philippine Internet Service Providers to “block access” to several sites, including Bulatlat.

Bulatlat’s website was later unblocked after the news outlet won its case in court against the NTC and Esperon.

A Rappler investigation in 2024 revealed that Cordoba is married to Monica Elena Cordoba, whose family partly owns the commercial fishing company Mercidar Fishing Corporation.

In 2024, the SC affirmed the decision of a Malabon court allowing Mercidar to fish within municipal waters, an area usually designated for small fisherfolk. Under Cordoba, the NTC did not issue service identity numbers essential for the system that tracks commercial vessels at sea.

Before working for the NTC, Cordoba served as an undersecretary at the Office of the Presidential Adviser on Political Affairs, under the Office of the President. He also served as a board member of the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation.

He also had experience in private practice. He worked for Siguion Reyna, Montecillo & Ongsiako Law Offices and auditing giant SGV & Co. – Rappler.com