A broad coalition of civil society, business leaders, faith groups, academics, labor organizations, disaster volunteers, and former condemned what they called a multibillion-peso “flood control scandal” that has cost lives and worsened the impact of climate disasters.
“We have had enough. We must reject the system of corruption that kills our fellow Filipinos and erodes our confidence in government,” the coalition said in a joint statement.
The signatories — among them the Makati Business Club, Financial Executives Institute of the Philippines, Integrated Bar of the Philippines, De La Salle Philippines, the Liberal Party, Akbayan, church leaders, retired generals, and former Cabinet officials — called for sweeping reforms in flood management, budgeting, procurement, and accountability mechanisms.
The groups expressed indignation at government officials, contractors, and private sector parties allegedly involved in anomalous projects, accusing them of flaunting wealth while siphoning taxpayer money.
They urged the Department of Public Works and Highways and the Department of Budget and Management to convene an independent multisectoral review committee to reassess projects in the 2026 budget and shift from cement-heavy infrastructure to sustainable, nature-based solutions such as watershed restoration and reforestation.
They also pressed Congress to abolish opaque “insertions” in the national budget and to establish an open bicameral conference committee and transparency server that would make changes traceable in real time.
The coalition also called on the Bureau of Internal Revenue, Anti-Money Laundering Council, Commission on Audit, and Commission on Elections to pursue tax evasion cases, asset freezes, fraud audits, and campaign finance violations linked to the flood-control projects mess.
“There must be accountability. Those responsible must be punished,” they said.
On Thursday, a broad coalition of business organizations and civil society groups issued a separate statement calling for the prosecution and imprisonment of public officials found guilty of being involved in substandard or even “ghost” flood-control projects and other infrastructure mess.
The signatories, composed of 30 business chambers, professional associations and advocacy groups, pushed for the creation of an independent body that would also recover stolen public funds.
The League of Provinces of the Philippines also called for tighter coordination between the national and local governments to prevent ghost infrastructure projects and ensure transparency in public spending.
LPP president and South Cotabato Governor Reynaldo Tamayo Jr. said several projects, some reported as completed, do not physically exist, while others bypass local proper planning mechanisms, particularly through “insertions” made after projects are reviewed by Provincial and Regional Development Councils.
Tamayo said some governors were even denied access to project sites, raising concerns over accountability.
