Thousands of Filipinos filled the streets of Manila on Sunday, protesting against a multi-billion-dollar corruption scandal involving so-called ghost flood-control projects. The scandal has sparked national outrage, especially as the country continues to suffer deadly floods caused by recent powerful typhoons.
The protests took place along EDSA — a historic site known for the 1986 People Power Revolution — and later gathered at Luneta Park near the presidential palace. Many demonstrators wore crocodile masks and carried signs shaped like crocodiles, symbolizing government greed and corruption.
The scandal erupted after President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. exposed widespread fraud in July, revealing that several government officials, lawmakers, and construction company owners were allegedly involved in approving non-existent flood-control projects. Even one of the president’s own relatives, a congressman, has been linked to the case.
So far, only eight officials from the Department of Public Works and Highways have been arrested. The government says more arrests — the “big fish” — will follow, but many Filipinos remain unconvinced.
Protester Mervin Toquero, from the National Council of Churches in the Philippines, told AFP he believes the problem goes far deeper. “It’s impossible that corruption of this scale happened without higher officials knowing,” he said.
Another demonstrator, 68-year-old Azon Tobiano, traveled with her granddaughter after seeing a call to protest on social media. She hopes the government will act fairly: “Justice must be served. Anyone involved — even if they are relatives of the president — should be jailed.”
Young activists also joined the rally, including 20-year-old drag performer Jessie Wanaluvmi J, who said people had died due to corruption and deserved accountability.
The Philippines has a long history of corruption cases where top officials often avoid real punishment. Many protesters fear this scandal may follow the same pattern, even as over 17,000 police officers were deployed to maintain order.
Earlier protests in September turned violent, leading to more than 200 arrests, but Sunday’s demonstrations remained largely peaceful.
The public now waits to see whether President Marcos Jr. will keep his promise to clean up government corruption — or whether the scandal will become another unresolved chapter in the country’s political history.
