Head above water
Kickbacks are illegal; it is a fact, but who is to stop this practice when it has become almost institutional?
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Kickbacks are illegal; it is a fact, but who is to stop this practice when it has become almost institutional?
The recent devastating floods did more than just inundate communities — they swept the hidden misdeeds of our leaders onto the muddy waters for all to see. Along with billions of pesos in wasted funds, much of the public’s trust in governance was washed away.
The exposure of the massive flood control projects scandal in 2025 opened the floodgates to intense public scrutiny and explosive congressional investigations. In his State of the Nation Address that year, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. highlighted deeply disturbing patterns in the allocation of government funds.
He revealed that a mere 15 of over 2,400 accredited contractors had cornered nearly P100 billion in projects — roughly 18 percent of the entire P545.6 billion flood mitigation budget allocated since July 2022.
This disturbing pattern might have gone unnoticed by a largely trusting public — a public often swayed by popularity over substance — had it not been for the undeniable exposure of the anomalies.
Lawmakers estimated that kickbacks and commissions had drained up to 25 to 70 percent of total project costs, leaving a fraction of the budget for actual construction. Seventy percent? Is it any wonder that all over the country, there are either badly constructed infrastructure or none at all where they should have been?
Kickbacks are illegal; it is a fact, but who is to stop this practice when it has become almost institutional? Investigations and Senate inquiries into the flood control projects scandal have revealed that kickbacks were not isolated incidents but part of an elaborate, systematic distribution network.
Every level of the job gets a cut, all made possible by collusion with the favored few contractors who engaged in the “maleta” style of “doing business.”
Another layer of this corrupt system lies in the manipulation of the national budget, with lawmakers abusing their mandate by inserting budget allocations where none would flow into the service of the Filipino people.
Yet, much like the “ghost projects” that could not remain hidden forever, the truth has finally surfaced. Whether or not these investigations yield enough evidence to put the biggest offenders behind bars, they have armed the public with crucial awareness, making it harder for citizens to simply turn a blind eye to “how business is done.”
When billions of pesos in taxpayer money go toward lining the pockets of those without a conscience, public outrage must be channeled into sustained vigilance. Moving forward, Filipinos must demand the unflinching enforcement of the strict legal frameworks already in place.
Only through relentless accountability can we ensure that the nation’s funds are used to build genuine protections for the people, rather than personal fortunes for the corrupt.
