By Len Transporte
As floods wreak havoc in parts of the country, Sen. Joel Villanueva is making waves online for a different reason: a luxury watch that a netizen claims could be worth more than P150 million.
A post on Threads resurfaced a photo of Villanueva taken during a Senate plenary session in December 2024, with the netizen zeroing in on the timepiece strapped to the senator’s wrist.
The watch, according to the poster, appears to be a rare Patek Philippe Nautilus with a Tiffany Blue dial — a highly coveted model that can command eye-popping prices in the resale market.
“A senator embroiled in flood control scandal wearing what I believe is a Patek Philippe Nautilus – Tiffany blue dial worth a measly PHP 150,000,000 (based on Chrono24),” the netizen wrote.
The poster clarified in the comments that the identification was based on personal familiarity with luxury watches, not an independent authentication of Villanueva’s timepiece.
“I’m a big fan (not owner, haha) of watches so I’m kind of familiar with it,” the netizen said.
The post quickly struck a nerve as images of flooded communities and severe weather dominated the news, with the supposed price tag of the watch adding fuel to criticism of the senator.
The netizen capped the post with a pointed jab: “Pano kaya nakakatulog siya anu?”
The online scrutiny comes as Villanueva continues to fend off allegations linking him to irregular flood control projects.
Former Department of Public Works and Highways official Henry Alcantara had accused Villanueva of receiving kickbacks equivalent to more than 30 percent of certain flood control projects, allegedly amounting to around P150 million.
Villanueva has strongly denied the corruption allegations.—Politiko.com.ph
