Newly appointed Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla faces urgent tasks to restore transparency, rebuild public trust, and confront entrenched corruption.
This is what’s needed at this time amid anomalous, substandard and ghost flood control projects costing hundreds of billions in taxpayers’ money that ended up in private pockets.
His first challenge is to reverse the erosion of public trust and reassert the Ombudsman’s role as a fearless guardian against corruption and abuse of power.
Remulla inherits an institution that, under his predecessor Samuel Martires, drew widespread criticism for restricting public access to Statements of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth.
The former Ombudsman actually shielded officials from scrutiny and undermined the public’s right to know. Reversing this erosion of accountability must be Remulla’s first act of institutional reset.
But the new Ombudsman faces serious challenges.
Two major scandals—the flood control fiasco and the Health Facilities Enhancement Program debacle—have exposed systemic failures in infrastructure governance.
Flood control projects have become synonymous with ghost contracts and political patronage. Over 400 health centers remain idle despite billions in public spending.
These are not isolated lapses; they are symptoms of a governance culture that virtually encourages impunity.
Remulla must act swiftly.
He has already ordered the reopening of SALN access to indicate his commitment to transparency.
Investigating the flood control and HFEP anomalies would demonstrate resolve.
Reforming internal processes by accelerating case buildup, protecting whistleblowers, and modernizing investigative systems would be giant steps in restoring credibility.
Yet the Ombudsman’s independence will be tested.
As a Marcos appointee and former Justice Secretary, Remulla must prove that he can rise above political pressure and pursue accountability wherever it leads, even if it implicates powerful allies.
The leadership change in the Office of the Ombudsman opens windows for civic engagement.
Civil society-led SALN monitoring campaigns can be revived. Citizen oversight modules can be co-developed to track investigations.
Multi-sectoral coalitions uniting local governments, civil society organizations, and academic institutions can help institutionalize reforms beyond Remulla’s term.
What we would like to emphasize is the Ombudsman is not merely a prosecutor, but also a guardian of public integrity.
If Remulla embraces this role with courage and conviction, he can help rebuild the trust that our democracy sorely needs.
The question now is: Can the new Ombudsman rise to the occasion? We really hope so.
