Mass actions against the corruption mafia in the government will become bigger and bolder in the coming days, since the administration of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is resorting to a whitewash.

Promises of a lineup of Department of Public Works and Highways officials and contractors behind bars before Christmas do not constitute justice in the flood control scandal.

It is becoming increasingly clear that a conspiracy to steal public funds has occurred, transcending party lines.

Trillion Peso March organizers are increasing the pressure on the government to take action beyond the Independent Commission for Infrastructure, which they consider to be a “laundromat” of the administration.

The ICI, thus far, has recommended criminal and administrative charges against, among others, two sitting senators whom the activists fear would be the sacrificial lambs as the trial will stop at them.

Rev. Wilmer Tria, one of the organizers of the anti-corruption rallies, said the mass actions will spread due to the public frustration over the steps taken thus far.

The moves are meant to appease the public’s anger. The motive is political survival rather than to provide justice.

The corrupt practice began with the perversion of the annual budget, which worsened during Marcos’ term, starting in 2022.

Based on estimates, some P1 trillion in unprogrammed appropriations (UA), which have become the conduit for the pork barrel, had accumulated since the start of Marcos’ term.

Tria said what is being done thus far is the recycling of soiled politicians.

“They get spun around, and when they come out, they look clean again,” he said, which happens through the ICI.

“It’s led by former Associate Justice Andres Reyes who, based on his record, has always followed the President’s line. He served the past administration well,” Tria pointed out.

Reyes is the perfect lackey. He approved putting Senator Leila de Lima in jail, declaring martial law in Mindanao, and ousting former Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno in the previous administration.

“So, he just follows orders,” Tria said.

All the actions of those in power are unfolding before Filipinos worldwide.

The administration’s strategy, using the ICI and the prosecution bodies, is to extinguish the moral fire.

Tria said the ICI is like saying, “Stop already. We’re doing what we’re supposed to do to calm things down, to douse the flames.”

Justice will consist of exposing and making accountable the real architects of the corruption.

The protesters do not hold any hope for the resumption of hearings of the Blue Ribbon Committee, with returning chairperson Senator Panfilo Lacson.

“We know for a fact that our politics is transactional. There are always deals and negotiations happening behind the scenes,” Tria said.

More indicting is the assessment of the protesters that what’s happening in the Blue Ribbon Committee is like a battle among thieves.

“They’re angry at each other simply because one stole more than the other,” he added.

It has always been the case that Congress is a brotherhood of the corrupt, tolerated by those in power for political leverage.

Schemers and opportunists in government believe that they can fool the Filipino people.

Subjected to politicians’ deceptions since birth, Filipinos have grown clever about who and how they are manipulated.