Triggered by the outrage over the Priority Development Assistance Fund scandal, millions of Filipinos trooped to the Luneta 10 years ago to denounce the so-called pork barrel scam in a massive protest rally that came to be known as the Million People March.

The scam, first exposed in July 2013, pointed to businesswoman Janet Lim-Napoles as the mastermind following the revelation of her second cousin and former personal assistant, Benhur Luy, whom she had detained in a condo unit for four months to prevent him from testifying.

More whistleblowers surfaced and pointed to Napoles' company as having defrauded the government of billions of pesos in ghost projects involving the creation of at least 20 bogus non-government organizations.

What triggered the public anger was the revelation that while the congressional pork barrel already put at least P25 billion a year in the hands of unscrupulous lawmakers, there were hundreds of billions more in special and regular funds disbursed and likely misused year after year.

It was estimated that the government was defrauded of at least P10 billion from 2007 to 2009, with a sizeable amount diverted to Napoles, some members of Congress, and other government officials.

Napoles had been charged since and was incarcerated, but it was only last Monday, or after over 10 years, that she was convicted of nine counts of corruption of a public official but was acquitted of plunder, the heavier offense, which is non-bailable.

The Sandiganbayan's Fifth Division sentenced her to a mere two years and four months imprisonment and meted a fine of over P26 million.

Napoles' acquittal on plunder charges raises concerns about the effectiveness of anti-corruption efforts in the Philippines. Critics have perceived this as a setback in the fight against corruption, sending a message that individuals accused of plunder can evade accountability.

They claim that the public's trust in the judicial system may be eroded by the acquittal since corruption is a pervasive issue that undermines the country's progress. An acquittal in a high-profile case can reinforce skepticism about the fairness and integrity of the legal process.