Batangas Rep. Leandro Leviste went on offense Friday, filing a 22-page libel complaint against Palace Press Officer/PCO Undersecretary Claire Castro before the Balayan Regional Trial Court in Batangasโturning a months-long public narrative war over his solar businesses into a courtroom contest. Leviste is seeking โฑ110 million in damages plus โฑ1 million in legal fees, arguing Castro crossed the line from commentary to defamation.
The dispute hinges on a specific allegation Leviste says is false: that he sold a company with a legislative franchise. In his filing, he draws a bright boundary between entitiesโsaying Solar Para Sa Bayan Corp. (SPBC), which received a 25-year franchise in 2019 to develop and operate microgrids, was not what was sold. Instead, he points to the Meralco-linked transaction involving SP New Energy Corp. (SPNEC)โa subsidiary under his broader corporate structureโwhere he divested about โฑ13.8 billion worth of shares to Meralco PowerGen Corp. (MGEN) in October 2025.
Castroโs remarks, Leviste says, were amplified through her YouTube content, where she questioned the operations and motives behind his solar firmsโan approach he claims insinuated that Solar Philippines carried unpaid obligations or penalties and exited via divestment. That backdrop sharpened this week after the Department of Energy said Solar Philippines faces roughly โฑ24 billion in penalties/financial obligations tied to terminated renewable energy contracts and unmet commitmentsโfuel for public suspicion, and precisely the kind of โcontextโ Leviste argues Castro used to paint him as legally compromised.
Castro has answered that the case is an attempt to silence her questions; Leviste counters itโs the Palace side trying to discredit him as he attacks the Marcos administration over alleged corruption linked to flood-control projects. In a separate interview on January 15, Leviste also acknowledged that SPBC is defunct and that the firm tied to the DOE penalties is no longer operatingโa concession that doesnโt end the argument, but raises the stakes of how facts were framed publicly. He has since claimed he fears for his safety, warning in a press setting: โHuwag niyo akong patayin.โ
Image from Leandro Legarda Leviste FB and RTVM Screenshot