Jonathan Frederic De Santos

Students from various colleges of the Polytechnic University of the Philippines in Manila walk out of their classrooms as part of the Black Friday protest against corruption on Friday, October 10, 2025.

Joined by students from other PUP campuses, they called for an end to corruption and urged the government to allocate sufficient funding for education. | via Jonathan Cellona, ABS-CBN News

Article (news)

Marilyn Cahatol

ABS-CBN News

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1763184647049557930779_1305819104926676_2709581082482105162_n.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960" alt="Students from various colleges of the Polytechnic University of the Philippines in Manila walk out of their classrooms as part of the Black Friday protest against corruption on Friday, October 10, 2025. Joined by students from other PUP campuses, they called for an end to corruption and urged the government to allocate sufficient funding for education. Jonathan Cellona, ABS-CBN News"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Students from various colleges of the Polytechnic University of the Philippines in Manila walk out of their classrooms as part of the Black Friday protest against corruption on Friday, October 10, 2025. Joined by students from other PUP campuses, they called for an end to corruption and urged the government to allocate sufficient funding for education. Jonathan Cellona, ABS-CBN News</span></span></span></div><p>MANILA — Progressive group Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan) said both President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Vice President Sara Duterte should be held accountable for the corruption issues that the two former political allies are facing.</p><p>Reacting to a video released by former congressman Zaldy Co implicating Marcos Jr. and former House Speaker Martin Romualdez in the flood-control scam, Bayan said the fresh accusations “[confirm] what many of us have been saying all along—that the President is the single person mainly responsible for the corruption-infested national budgets.” </p><p>Former Ako Bicol Party-list rep. Zaldy Co <a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2025/11/14/zaldy-co-breaks-silence-on-flood-control-mess-1214">broke his silence </a>and accused Marcos, through Budget Secretary Amenah Pangandaman, and Romualdez of instructing him to insert P100 billion worth of projects in the 2025 national budget while he was chair of the House appropriations panel.</p><div><a href="http://In video, Zaldy Co says he didn’t get any money from flood-control projects"><strong>In video, Zaldy Co says he didn’t get any money from flood-control projects</strong></a></div><p>“Unless he admits to complete incompetence, he himself should be investigated and held accountable for his central role in the entire scam,” Bayan said.</p><p>The progressive group noted that aside from Marcos, Duterte must also be held accountable for “wantonly misusing her confidential funds and the Department of Education&#x27;s budget.”</p><p>Accusations against Duterte led to her being impeached earlier this year, but the Supreme Court has ruled the proceedings against her had violated a ban on impeachment against the same official in the same year.</p><p>Bayan underscored that all individuals involved in the flood control corruption issue under the administrations of Marcos Jr. and of former President Rodrigo Duterte must also be held accountable.</p><p>“[The] Marcos and Duterte dynasties are both guilty of using their power to entrench plunder, corruption, and impunity,&quot; the group said. </p><p>“To single out only one faction, or to refuse to name all those principally responsible for the grand larceny of people’s money, is not only myopic and misleading but is nothing less than political opportunism that promotes the interests of the truly corrupt under the guise of combating corruption.” </p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2025/10/21/palace-probe-on-sara-futerte-s-confidential-funds-up-to-ombudsman-1215"><strong>Palace: Probe on Sara Duterte’s confidential funds up to Ombudsman</strong></a></div><div> </div><div><strong>‘MARCOS NOT BLAMELESS’</strong></div><p>Bayan, in the statement, said they refuse to believe that Marcos is “blameless” in the anomalous flood control projects.</p><p>“We do not subscribe to the view that Marcos is supposedly better than Duterte, and that we have to eliminate the Duterte threat first before aiming our guns at Marcos. Or worse, that we have to ally with the Marcoses to neutralize the Dutertes,” it also said.</p><p>The Palace on Friday downplayed Co’s allegations as “<a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2025/11/14/-pure-hearsay-malaca-ang-disputes-zaldy-co-s-accusations-vs-marcos-pangandaman-1731">pure hearsay</a>.” Pangandaman said Marcos could have simply inserted all the projects he wanted in the National Expenditure Program (NEP) before it was submitted to Congress.</p><p>Meanwhile, Bayan said it refuses to choose between the two top officials, who, thay said are only looking our for their own political interests.</p><p>This as the Iglesia ni Cristo (INC) is set to stage a <a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2025/11/14/inc-welcomes-public-to-3-day-rally-for-transparency-1657">three-day rally </a>on November 16 to 18 amid rumors of destabilization attempts.</p><p>“There should be no compromise or collusion with either the Marcoses or the Dutertes in their factional struggle for power,” Bayan said.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>RELATED VIDEO:</strong></div><div style="text-align:center"><iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/qUpVtCYWw_A?si=aPbwv9XGN5dg1J-e" title="YouTube video player" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe></div>

<p>Progressive group Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan) on Saturday called to hold President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Vice President Sara Duterte accountable for the corruption issues alleged against the two top public officials.</p>

Progressive group Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan) on Saturday called to hold President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Vice President Sara Duterte accountable for the corruption issues alleged against the two top public officials.

Bayan: Hold both Marcos, Duterte accountable for corruption issues

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Bayan: Hold both Marcos, Duterte accountable for corruption issues

Marilyn Cahatol,

ABS-CBN News

Published November 15, 2025 01:40 PM PHT

Read More:

Ferdinand Marcos Jr.

Sara Duterte

Zaldy Co

flood control

corruption

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