Similar to most Filipinos, lawyer Ferdinand Topacio is floored whenever he hears the amounts allegedly pocketed by elected officials in the flood control scandal.

During his youth, Topacio shared that the worst word for corruption then was a “10 percenter,” meaning someone who gets at most 10 percent of the amount of a project through kickbacks. 

His father would remark, “Uy, 10 percenter oh,” a phrase that carried a mix of shame and scandal.

Topacio, who writes a column for Daily Tribune, explained that, in those days, taking even 10 percent was already considered shocking. 

Compared to that, he said, the scale of corruption in the Philippines today is horrible, with reports saying kickbacks on public funds reach 75 percent or more, particularly for ghost projects.

While the amounts involved during his growing-up years were in the millions of pesos, the hundreds of billions of pesos regularly delivered to crooks in government keep him up at night. 

Born into a political family, he is the younger son of former Cavite Senior Provincial Board Member and three-term City Councilor Atty. Arturo M. Topacio Jr. of Imus and Cavite City, and former City Treasury Administrative Officer Belen Sumague-Topacio of Tanauan, Batangas. 

Topacio views the current political climate as a “powder keg” — a volatile situation that could spark widespread unrest and chaos fueled by public frustration.

He characterized the present state of affairs as the “greatest thievery” in the country’s history, echoing the people’s sentiments. “The authorities and the current administration don’t seem to be doing anything about the charges of huge anomalies,” he said on DAILY TRIBUNE’s digital show Straight Talk. 

During the talk show, aired every Wednesday at 10 a.m., Topacio also reiterated the political situation as volatile amid rising public frustration that could trigger widespread unrest.

He warned that the situation poses not only socio-political risks but also economic ones, citing a lack of public confidence in the government.

He also warned that a lack of trust in government could ultimately pull the economy down.

Corruption engine

Topacio pointed to the discretion allowed legislators in handling the general appropriations fund as the single most significant driver of corruption. 

This, he said, often results in poor budgeting and poor coordination, especially when key personnel are improperly placed.

He emphasized that drastically cutting budgets for projects, such as flood control, is not the solution.

Topacio said that announcing a considerable reduction in the number of flood control projects may provide good publicity, but it does not solve any problem.

“I cannot even wrap my brain around these amounts,” he said, stressing that the scandals reach deeply into government. “They extend into almost every nook and cranny of the executive and legislative branches. The judiciary appears to be the only untouched institution.”

For him, the real solution is a genuine cleansing, not just superficial actions like Cabinet reshuffles or the resignation of the former speaker.

Root of the rot

Transparency, he said, is one of the simplest yet most powerful ways to prevent corruption. From the very start of any project, the public should have access to information that allows them to scrutinize and monitor it.

According to Topacio, transparency must be present throughout all stages, from the implementation proposal to ensure constant public oversight that deters corruption.

When asked what law should be applied to end corruption, he noted that even the best laws are only as effective as the people tasked to enforce them.