Rowegie Abanto

Members of the Pinagkaisang Samahan ng mga Tsuper at Operators Nationwide (PISTON), together with flood-affected communities, stage a rally in Mendiola, Manila, on Thursday to denounce government corruption and demand accountability in flood control projects. Maria Tan, ABS-CBN News

Members of the Pinagkaisang Samahan ng mga Tsuper at Operators Nationwide (PISTON), together with flood-affected communities, stage a rally in Mendiola, Manila, on Thursday to denounce government corruption and demand accountability in flood control projects. The groups also raised concerns over the worsening state of jeepneys under the government’s modernization program, calling for genuine support instead of displacement.
Maria Tan, ABS-CBN News

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ANTI CORRUTPION PROTEST

ABS-CBN News

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/175841770931520250918-piston-anti-corruption-protest-MT15.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/><span class="fr-inner" spellcheck="false" style="text-align:left">Members of the Pinagkaisang Samahan ng mga Tsuper at Operators Nationwide (PISTON), together with flood-affected communities, stage a rally in Mendiola, Manila, on Thursday to denounce government corruption and demand accountability in flood control projects. <em>Maria Tan, ABS-CBN News</em></span></span></span></div><p>MANILA — Massive corruption involving billions of pesos in flood control projects could be traced to the plunder of state coffers during the Martial Law years of former President Ferdinand Marcos Sr., a group of victims under the martial rule said Sunday.</p><p>&quot;Ang nangyayaring korapsyon ngayon ay tradisyong mauugat sa korapsyon noong martial law. Sino nga ba ang nuknukan sa pagkakorap kundi si Ferdinand Marcos Sr.?&quot; the Campaign Against the Return of the Marcoses and Martial Law (CARMMA) said.</p><p>(The corruption happening now is a tradition rooted in the corruption during Martial Law. And who else was the epitome of corruption but Ferdinand Marcos Sr.?)</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/spotlight/09/21/21/why-commemorating-martial-law-anniv-on-sept-23-matters"><strong>RELATED: Dismantling the Marcos propaganda: Filipinos told to reject Sept. 21 martial law &#x27;anniv&#x27;</strong></a></div><p>CARMMA issued the statement as it commemorates the 53rd anniversary of Martial Law, which it called the &quot;golden age of corruption&quot; in the country&#x27;s history.</p><p>The Marcos dictatorship was marked by killings, human rights abuses, and the plunder of state coffers.</p><p>The family was said to have amassed between $5 billion and $10 billion in wealth hidden overseas, according to the Philippine Commission on Good Government.</p><p>The government has recovered a total of P170 billion over the past 30 years.</p><p>CARMMA&#x27;s statement came as thousands of Filipinos were expected to troop to the EDSA People Power Monument in Quezon City, to Luneta Park in Manila, and to other parts of the country to protest the corruption in flood control and other infrastructure projects.</p><p>Large demonstrations against corruption staged in Luneta Park in Manila were last seen in 2013 — called the Million People March — when tens of thousands of Filipinos called for accountability and abolition of the Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF), which was eventually struck down by the Supreme Court as unconstitutional.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2025/9/21/-sobrang-lala-ng-korapsyon-all-systems-go-for-trillion-peso-march-0833"><strong>&#x27;Sobrang lala ng korapsyon&#x27;: All systems go for ’Trillion Peso March’</strong></a></div><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2025/9/11/dpwh-chief-napoles-scam-petty-change-compared-to-flood-control-corruption-1053"><strong>DPWH chief: Napoles scam &#x27;like petty change&#x27; compared to flood control corruption</strong><br/></a></div><p>The group said it was not satisfied with the relief of officials and the ongoing investigations into the controversy, which it said were only meant to pacify public fury toward the flood control corruption scandal.</p><p>Instead, it said the government should jail plunderers and compel them to return the funds they received through anomalous infrastructure projects.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>&#x27;ENTRENCHED CULTURE OF IMPUNITY&#x27;</strong></div><p>Meanwhile, a group of political prisoners on Sunday called the fresh corruption scam &quot;not merely theft but plunder on a martial law scale.&quot;</p><p>The group Kapatid denounced &quot;the entrenched culture of impunity, abuse of power, and elite greed that has persisted from Marcos Sr. through the current Marcos Jr. and Duterte administrations.&quot;</p><p>Calling the flood control fraud &quot;shameless theft&quot; of funds, Kapatid demanded a thorough investigation and accountability from top government officials, including Department of Public Works and Highways officials, contractors, and lawmakers who allegedly received kickbacks in exchange for approving infrastructure projects.</p><p>&quot;President Marcos Jr., who signed both the national budget and unprogrammed allocations, must also be held accountable,&quot; they said.</p><p>It also highlighted the Duterte administration&#x27;s role and cited the P51 billion in flood control projects allocated to Davao City 1st District Rep. Paolo Duterte&#x27;s district from 2019 to 2021, which it said is &quot;a glaring example of abuse.&quot;</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2025/9/9/paolo-duterte-claims-lawmakers-using-davao-city-p51-b-budget-as-diversion-1635"><strong>Paolo Duterte claims lawmakers using Davao City district&#x27;s P51-B budget as ‘diversion’</strong></a></div><p>The political prisoners said that the anti-corruption protests should not only continue but also &quot;grow broader and stronger through an organized movement to combat corruption effectively.&quot;</p><p>&quot;Corruption is not just an issue of governance but a weapon of repression. The billions stolen from our people are the same billions not used for disaster prevention, pandemic response, health, or education. They are stolen futures,&quot; they said.</p><div><strong>—Rowegie Abanto, ABS-CBN News</strong></div><div><br/></div><div><strong>WATCH</strong></div><div><br/></div><div><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/reIVQgV8Lto?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><br/></div>

<p>The massive corruption involving billions of pesos in flood control projects could be traced to the plunder of state coffers during the Martial Law years of former President Ferdinand Marcos Sr., a group of victims under the martial rule said Sunday.</p>

The massive corruption involving billions of pesos in flood control projects could be traced to the plunder of state coffers during the Martial Law years of former President Ferdinand Marcos Sr., a group of victims under the martial rule said Sunday.

Infra corruption a 'tradition' started during Martial Law: group

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Infra corruption a 'tradition' started during Martial Law: group

ABS-CBN News

Published Sep 21, 2025 10:04 AM PHT

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Luneta Park

EDSA People Power Monument

Protest

Flood Control Protest

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