The Philippine Senate is practically an exclusive Multimillionaires’ Club, using the lawmaker’s Statements of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth (SALNs) as a yardstick.
Nineteen of the sitting 24 senators have disclosed their respective SALNs to the media, showing a broad range of declared wealth among them.
The latest batch of releases included Senators Francis Escudero, Jinggoy Estrada, Panfilo Lacson, Juan Miguel Zubiri, Loren Legarda, Pia Cayetano, Bam Aquino, Erwin Tulfo, Raffy Tulfo, JV Ejercito, Lito Lapid, Joel Villanueva, and siblings Mark and Camille Villar.
Senate Secretary Renato Bantug Jr. confirmed that this was the largest single-day release of SALNs since the start of the 20th Congress.
Earlier submissions came from Senate President Vicente Sotto III, Robinhoon Padilla, Sherwin Gatchalian, Risa Hontiveros, and Francis Pangilinan.
Escudero, Estrada, and Villanueva were among those recently linked to ongoing investigations into alleged irregularities in flood control projects.
Escudero appeared to be the poorest with a net worth of P18.8 million as of December 31, 2024, with no liabilities and business interests to show.
On the other hand, Mark Villar was evidently the richest with a net worth of more than P1.26 billion, followed by Raffy Tulfo at P1.05 billion, as opposed to his brother Erwin who declared P497 million assets ownership.
Zubiri was the fourth wealthiest at P431.7 million, attributing the increase to the sale of power company shares to Vivant Energy. Lacson had P256.7 million and liabilities of P11.8 million, resulting in a net worth of P244.9 million as of June 30, 2025.
Legarda’s SALN indicated a net worth of P79.2 million, while Cayetano listed P128.2 million with no real estate holdings but several corporate interests.
Aquino’s net worth stood at P86.5 million, consisting mostly of real estate and personal assets, with no declared business ventures.
Ejercito listed P137 million, while Lapid manifested P202 million with multiple business ventures and family members in public service.
Villanueva reported P49.5 million, and Estrada listed P221 million, both declaring extensive family links in government. Camille Villar declared P362 million in net worth.
As of this posting, Senators Alan Peter Cayetano, Ronald dela Rosa, Bong Go, Rodante Marcoleta, and Imee Marcos have yet to release their SALNs.
The Senate Secretary said media requests for the remaining declarations will be processed within 15 working days in compliance with transparency rules.
Under the law, the SALN serves as a tool for accountability, disclosing both financial standing and possible conflicts of interest among public officials.
Editor’s Note: This story has been updated. Originally posted with the headline “Senators reveal SALNs; Tulfos, Zubiri richest.”
