Carpio says flood control corruption worse than Martial Law era

Former Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio described the flood control scam as the “biggest corruption scandal” in history, saying it surpasses the corruption during the martial law years of President Ferdinand Marcos Sr.

In a radio interview on Friday, 19 September 2025, he said former DPWH Secretary Manny Bonoan earlier disclosed that Congress inserted P450 billion into the public works budget. President Marcos Jr. vetoed only P29 billion of the amount, which Carpio described as merely “window dressing.” He added that “Secretary Manny Bonoan said that the Senate and House of Representatives created P450 billion to the DPWH budget for 2025.”

“He could have vetoed the entire insertion, as it did not come from the National Expenditure Program. By signing the budget into law, Marcos Jr. effectively approved the remaining P421 billion," he said in Filipino.

"In other words, Marcos Jr. approved it, so he took ownership of it. He is responsible for the P421 billion insertion. He cannot escape liability because he could have vetoed it as it didn’t even come from the National Expenditure Program. It was inserted by Congress, and he should have rejected it. If he had done that, he could have submitted a supplemental budget to include those items properly. But he allowed it, he signed the bill, so he owns it. He owns this P421 billion insertion," Carpio explained.

He also said the budget could’ve been used in other sectors instead of the flood control projects of the DPWH. "The current budget does not prioritize education. They transferred the budget for computers in education to the DPWH. The budget for PhilHealth was also moved to the DPWH. Even the budget for AFP modernization was reallocated to the DPWH. These funds were redirected toward flood control projects, which is why we are in this situation now," he said.

Carpio emphasized that President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. needs to address the issue effectively, as both his personal credibility and his family’s reputation are on the line.