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Thunderstorms are expected to affect parts of Metro Manila, Rizal, and Batangas on Thursday, Oct. 9, according to the weather bureau.

In its 7:23 a.m. advisory, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) said moderate to heavy rain with lightning and strong winds is expected in the areas within the next two hours.

In Metro Manila, the advisory covers Quezon City, Caloocan, Valenzuela, Navotas, Malabon, Marikina, Taguig, Pasig, and Pateros.

In Rizal, affected areas include Rodriguez, Antipolo, Tanay, San Mateo, Cainta, and Taytay.

In Batangas, the following areas will experience thunderstorms: Batangas City, Mabini, Tingloy, San Pascual, Bauan, and San Luis.

Thunderstorms are already being experienced in parts of Quezon and Bulacan. Pagasa said these conditions may persist for the next two hours and may extend to nearby areas.

In its 4 a.m. update, Pagasa reported that Metro Manila and nearby provinces are expected to experience cloudy skies with scattered rains and thunderstorms due to the southwesterly wind flow, or the wind which blows from the southwest.

Dynasties are central to Southeast Asian politics as parties are weak, patronage is entrenched, and family names are the most durable political brands. But they also face persistent difficulties. Heirs inherit office without real authority, patriarchs refuse to step aside, and rivals, whether other families or powerful institutions, intervene.

With two prominent political families locked in a bitter feud in the Philippines, the Shinawatra clan currently being sidelined in Thailand, and the Hun family navigating an uncertain succession in Cambodia, now is the right moment to take stock of how dynastic politics operates throughout Southeast Asia.

The Philippines offers perhaps the starkest example of dynastic democracy in Southeast Asia. Philippine politics remains structured less by parties or programs than by family blocs, with the Marcos and Duterte clans foremost among them. Coalitions rest on name recognition and patronage networks that have proved more durable than any formal party institution.

The Philippine system remains fiercely competitive. But dynastic politics there narrows true democratic representation and weakens accountability. It also leaves coalitions prone to fracture. The alliance between the Marcos and Duterte families that swept the 2022 elections, for example, cracked almost immediately.

The current Philippine Vice President, Sara Duterte, is now in open conflict with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., the son and namesake of the former Philippine dictator who was ousted in 1986. This rupture has unsettled the government.

Sara Duterte has faced impeachment efforts, which have been blocked by a Supreme Court shaped by the appointees of her father, Rodrigo Duterte, who was president between 2016 and 2022. At the same time, she is positioning herself as a leading contender for the 2028 presidency.

Indonesia’s newer democracy tells another, albeit relatively similar, story. Since democratization in 1998, decentralization and local elections have opened routes from local to national office. Families have used party nominations, money, media, and entrenched networks to turn those routes into political power. Dynastic maneuvering now sits at the center of national and local Indonesian politics.

Gibran Rakabuming Raka, the son of former President Joko ‘Jokowi’ Widodo, reached vice presidency in 2024 after a controversial constitutional court ruling reduced the age requirement for candidacy. The chief justice at the time was Widodo’s brother-in-law, Anwar Usman.

Public unease with hereditary politics in Indonesia has been visible on the streets. Protests in 2024 and wider demonstrations in 2025 have taken place over lawmakers’ perks, cost-of-living pressures, and police violence. Much of this anger reflects the trajectory of post-Suharto Indonesia.

Thailand and Cambodia show how dynasties function under less democratic conditions. In Thailand, parties aligned with the Shinawatra family have played a major role in the country’s politics since 2001. Yet governments linked to the family have been routinely constrained or overturned by Thailand’s conservative royalist-military establishment.

Cambodia illustrates a different dynamic. Prime minister for decades, Hun Sen built a durable coalition of political, economic, and security elites, sustained by the brutal suppression of dissent and generous rewards for loyalists. Now the aging patriarch is attempting to secure his family’s dominance into the next generation.

The reemergence of Hun Sen as Cambodia’s decisive political voice during the recent border conflict with Thailand, for example, raises doubts about his son Hun Manet’s readiness for the top job.

Dynasties endure in Southeast Asia because they thrive in environments where institutions are weak, parties are underdeveloped, and patronage is the main currency of politics. Family names provide continuity that other political structures often cannot.

But dynasties also struggle. Heirs may lack the authority, charisma, or networks of their predecessors. Older patriarchs and matriarchs often remain active, limiting renewal. And rival families compete fiercely for power, which can fragment coalitions and unsettle governments.

In the Philippines and Indonesia, two electoral democracies, politics is shaped by bargains among dominant families. This raises doubts about the depth of democratic competition. In Thailand and Cambodia, politics is more tightly controlled. Dynasties there expose the fragility of succession and the limits imposed by entrenched power centers.

Across Southeast Asia, dynasties still shape how power is acquired and passed on. But they do not resolve the uncertainties of rule. The only constant seems to be that authority remains concentrated among elites and shifts only within their ranks. The Jakarta Post/Asia News Network

Neil Loughlin is a lecturer in comparative politics at City St George’s, University of London.

The Philippine Daily Inquirer is a member of the Asia News Network, an alliance of 22 media titles in the region.

Jewel Encarnacion has found a new home at Cignal in the PVL.

Cignal, which has rebranded its team as the ‘Super Spikers,’ welcomed the former Galeries HighRisers player on Thursday as the PVL Reinforced Conference kicks off anew.

Encarnacion was the 15th overall pick of Galeries in the inaugural PVL Rookie Draft last year and has been one of the HighRisers’ offensive options in their quarterfinal run in the All-Filipino Conference.

‘Thank you to Galeries Tower for the chance to start my professional career and for all the learnings I’ll carry forward. It was an honor to play for the team,’ she said.

At Cignal, the University of the Philippines Fighting Maroons standout will reunite with her college coach Shaq Delos Santos.

‘It feels great to be back under Coach Shaq someone who knows my game and helped me grow as an athlete,’ said Encarnacion, who will bolster the wing spiker rotation of Cignal with Vanie Gandler, Ishie Lalongisip, Heather Guino-o, Erika Santos, and Tin Tiamzon.

‘I’m also excited to join Cignal’s current roster, where I believe I can contribute more and continue to develop as a player.’

The 24-year-old outside spiker shared that it didn’t take long for her decide to choose Cignal as her next destination.

‘I thank VP Global Management for helping me navigate this transition. Despite the short time to negotiate with the teams, I was able to come up with the right decision on which team to choose,’ Encarnacion said. ‘I’m thankful to all the teams that took time to reach out and express their willingness to include me in their roster.’

Encarnacion could make her debut on Monday when Cignal battles Choco Mucho at Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Galeries kicks off its campaign on Thursday against Petro Gazz at Dasmariñas Arena in Cavite.

A 12-year-old boy went missing on Wednesday, Oct. 8, while crossing a river near San Miguel Beach in San Antonio town.

According to an initial report from the Philippine Coast Guard, the boy, a resident of Barangay Antipolo, allegedly drowned around 4:30 p.m. in the Pamatawan River.

Search and rescue operations are ongoing, assisted by local residents, personnel from the San Antonio Coast Guard sub-station, and the Philippine National Police Maritime.

SAKO Pilipinas, the local subsidiary of wooden products manufacturer Hong Kong SSG Ltd, has unveiled its new facility in Cavite, according to the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (Peza).

Peza said in a statement that the 1,000-square-meter facility located at the Cavite Economic Zone was expected to boost the firm’s expanding operations.

‘This investment also further strengthens the local packaging industry and supports sustainable, homegrown manufacturing,’ Peza said on Wednesday.

To date, SAKO Pilipinas produces more than 22 million packaging units annually.

SAKO Pilipinas CEO Erny Yu said the new facility would provide reliable and tailored packaging solutions to the local manufacturing sector.

‘Sako Pilipinas combines global expertise with a local, sustainable approach to ensure that our packaging solutions meet what the local market needs,’ Yu said during the inauguration ceremony held on Monday.

Sustainable manufacturing

Peza Director General Tereso Panga said it would help shore up the resilience of the domestic supply chain while promoting a sustainable manufacturing base.

‘Your company’s core business the manufacture of woven polypropylene sacks and paper sacks literally carries the weight of many industries. You are an essential partner in keeping our industries and our daily lives moving.’ Panga said.

‘And as we evolve and adopt sustainability, I hope that as you continue to expand, you shall be partners with us in this effort and challenge of securing the resilience, viability and longevity not only of your business, but also that of the ecozone industry and environment,’ he added.

Established in 2006, SAKO Pilipinas manufactures woven polypropylene and paper sacks. It is recognized as a leading provider of quality and sustainable packaging solutions for various commodities and manufactured goods.

Portfolio

The company’s packaging solutions are widely used for rice, fertilizers and feeds as well as sand, gravel, detergent and other industrial products.

SAKO Pilipinas sources a portion of its raw materials from recycled sacks and packaging as part of its commitment to adopting environmentally responsible manufacturing.

The manufacturing sector drove investments in economic zones with 98 projects in the January to September period, based on the Peza’s tally.

Governments in Southeast Asia including the Philippines as well as South Korea, China and Japan should support economic sectors that are vulnerable to American trade policy and also geopolitical tensions to bolster the region’s resilience to heightened uncertainties.

This is according to the Singapore-based ASEAN+3 Macroeconomic Research Office (AMRO), which today released its ASEAN+3 Financial Stability Report 2025.

Domestic demand

‘While intra-regional trade and domestic demand have become increasingly important growth drivers across ASEAN+3, the region remains deeply connected to the global financial system and is therefore not insulated from global shocks,’ said Dong HE, chief economist of AMRO.

‘Overall, the region’s financial system remains resilient, although pockets of vulnerabilities persist,’ He said in a press briefing held in Singapore. The Philippine Daily Inquirer attended online.

The report finds that export-oriented businesses might face pressures on profit margins amid shifting trade dynamics. Particularly vulnerable are smaller firms with high exposure to the US market.

Also, inflation pressures in the US could persist amid higher import tariffs. This complicates the US Federal Reserve’s monetary policy stance and ‘potentially triggering spillovers to other parts of the world.’

Further, growing uncertainty around the US dollar’s safe-haven status could further affect the global financial landscape adversely.

Global headwinds

Still, the AMRO said the so-called ASEAN+3 economies remain well-positioned to navigate global headwinds.

The think tank said well-calibrated policy mixes and strong fundamentals including robust banking systems, deepening financial markets, ample foreign reserves, and available policy space have provided critical buffers.

‘With inflation largely subdued and expectations well-anchored in most economies, central banks can maintain accommodative monetary policy to support growth,’ AMRO said.

It added that, at the same time, macroprudential tools offer additional safeguards to maintain financial stability and mitigate external spillovers.

‘However, AMRO underscores that support should be carefully targeted to vulnerable sectors and deployed prudently to preserve policy space amid elevated external uncertainty,’ the think tank said.

The Philippines has spent trillions on flood-control projects, yet every typhoon season, the same scenes unfold: submerged barangays, families stranded on rooftops, classrooms turned into evacuation centers.

Data from the International Disaster Database reveal a grim constant: from 2000 to 2024, storms (201) and floods (109) accounted for nearly two-thirds of all recorded disasters far outpacing earthquakes, droughts, or volcanic eruptions.

‘These are not just numbers,’ said Dr. Rogelio Alicor Panao, INQUIRER Metrics data scientist and associate professor at the University of the Philippines. ‘They mean drowned neighborhoods, ruined crops, and billions in damages.’

Despite this, the government’s spending priorities tell a different story: a country obsessed with pouring concrete rather than building resilience.

The concrete fixation

Analysis of PhilGEPS procurement records from 2000 to 2021 shows that construction captured more than half of all government contracts every year, peaking above 70 percent in 2018.

In contrast, procurement for health medicines, hospitals, and medical supplies rarely exceeded 5 percent, even during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The figures, Panao explained, suggest that while hospitals may be constructed, operational capacity including medicines, supplies, and equipment has remained relatively underfunded.

He added that the imbalance ‘raises fundamental questions about whether procurement is truly advancing citizen welfare or simply generating projects that are politically and visually rewarding.’

In total, government spending on construction projects reached ?4.65 trillion, dwarfing every other category, including information technology (?152 billion), drugs and medicines (?132 billion), and medical supplies (?74 billion).

When ‘climate funds’ become corruption funds

While floods remain the country’s top climate threat, recent data from Greenpeace Philippines suggest that even climate adaptation funding meant to help communities survive has become another venue for graft.

Graphics by Ed Lustan/Inquirer.net

Greenpeace found that up to ?1.089 trillion in climate-tagged expenditures may have been lost to corruption since 2023. In 2025 alone, ?560 billion could have gone missing from the ?800 billion climate-tagged projects handled by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), about 90 percent of all climate funds that year.

‘A trillion pesos is a staggering, absurd amount, siphoned by avaricious, self-serving officials and contractor corporations from projects meant to help people cope with escalating climate impacts,’ said Greenpeace campaigner Jefferson Chua.

‘This is unacceptable. They’re not just plundering government coffers, they’re also crippling the ability of millions of Filipinos to survive in the face of an escalating climate crisis. Theft of climate funds at such a scale is atrocious, and offenders are akin to climate criminals,’ Chua continued.

The group cited the National Integrated Climate Change Database and Information Exchange System (NICCDIES), showing that flood control and drainage works dominate climate-tagged projects 24,764 of 26,874, or 90 percent but with little to show for it on the ground.

‘Ghost projects’ and the flood of plunder

Behind the grand numbers are ghost towns and ghost projects.

In Bulacan, the Commission on Audit (COA) recently filed multiple fraud audit reports uncovering nonexistent or duplicated flood control projects worth over ?700 million. One ‘completed’ project was found to predate its own contract; others were credited to sites where no work was ever done.

Contractors flagged in the audits SYMS Construction Trading, Topnotch Catalyst Builders, Triple 8 Construction, and Wawao Builders were all repeat recipients of multi-million contracts under the same DPWH-Bulacan 1st District Engineering Office.

The state auditors noted that ‘a slope protection structure already existed at the approved location before the contract took effect on February 25, 2025,’ and that ‘no explanation was provided by the DPWH-Bulacan 1st DEO representatives why the location was changed.’

The scheme, COA warned, could result in double-counted accomplishments and false reporting a template for how public funds vanish between the spreadsheet and the street.

Where the money pools and who profits

Between July 2022 and May 2025, ?545.64 billion was poured into nearly 10,000 flood control projects, according to Malacañang’s internal probe. But at least 6,021 of those projects, worth more than ?350 billion, did not specify what kind of structure was even built.

Former Public Works Secretary Rogelio ‘Babes’ Singson said the math alone is suspicious:

‘For flood control, I only spent ?182 billion [in six years]. Look at the 2025 budget ?350 billion for one year. Where did all that go?’

Graphics by Ed Lustan/Inquirer.net

COA’s findings combined with testimonies before the Senate and House hearings suggest where it went: into padded dredging contracts, ghost floodwalls, and pumping stations that exist only on paper.

Former COA commissioner Heidi Mendoza previously explained why dredging has long been a corruption magnet:

‘Those looking to profit schedule dredging when it’s raining it’s nearly impossible to verify the results.’

Climate change, same old crooks

Environmental groups warn that this corruption does more than waste money it worsens climate vulnerability.

Greenpeace noted that the ‘gargantuan budget for climate tagged-projects under the purview of the DPWH shows the government’s shortsighted overreliance on gray infrastructure for climate adaptation.’

The World Bank’s 2022 Climate and Development Report estimated that the Philippines could lose up to 7.6 percent of its GDP by 2030 due to climate change. Yet instead of investing in nature-based, community-led adaptation mangrove rehabilitation, watershed protection, proper land use planning the bulk of funds keep flowing to politically engineered projects.

‘Massive corruption on flood control projects at a time of climate change, worsened by the continued extraction and operation of fossil fuel companies in the name of profit, is piling one injustice over another onto Filipino communities,’ Chua said.

‘Filipinos cannot continue to suffer the double burden of corruption and corporate impunity,’ he added.

Building trust, not just dikes

Experts agree: resilience is not built by pouring concrete but by restoring public trust and ecosystems.

Dr. Panao emphasized that the issue isn’t just infrastructure inefficiency but governance failure.

‘Trillions have already sunk into concrete, yet the waters keep rising,’ he said.

‘Concrete dikes and drainage alone cannot keep pace with a changing climate,’ Panao wrote. ‘Perhaps it is time to move beyond politics and quick fixes. Building resilience is not just about concrete; it is about choices that keep people safe long after the floodwaters recede.’

Greenpeace, meanwhile, called on President Marcos Jr. to pursue legal accountability for both corrupt contractors and climate polluters, institute transparency safeguards, and invest in nature-based solutions.

As the 2025 La Niña season looms, those calls echo the frustrations of communities from Bulacan to Maguindanao who keep asking the same question after every flood:

If trillions have been spent to protect us, why are we still drowning?

Mounting allegations of corruption against high-ranking government officials have wiped out P1.7 trillion in the market value of companies listed on the Philippine Stock Exchange in just three weeks, reflecting that public trust not strong fundamentals remains the economy’s main growth driver, according to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

‘When trust breaks down, capital dries up, and everyone government, business and the public pays the price,’ SEC Chair Francis Lim said in a speech before members of the Financial Executives Institute of the Philippines (Finex) on Oct. 7 and released to the media on Wednesday.

From Aug. 11 to Aug. 29 this year, the total value of listed companies plunged 12 percent, tumbling to P12.6 trillion from P14.3 trillion, according to SandP Global Market Intelligence.

Lim noted that the stock decline came despite improving corporate earnings, indicating that ‘investors aren’t fleeing because of weak fundamentals; they’re fleeing because of weak integrity.’

‘Let’s face the hard truth: our stock market is a laggard,’ he said.

‘Sadly, this reflects something deeper a crisis of confidence.’

Lim said the billion-peso flood control scandal has shaken public confidence, and ‘it’s a stark reminder that corruption is a weapon of mass wealth destruction.’

Analysts have noted that corporate earnings were robust in the first half of the year, but this was not enough to lift the stock market.

Year-to-date, the benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange Index has tumbled by 7.12 percent and struggled to stay above the 6,000 support level. It slipped to a six-month low of 5,997.60 on Sept. 29.

Reputational issue

Alfredo Panlilio, president of the Management Association of the Philippines (MAP), noted that while investors were still coming to the private sector through the capital market, overall sentiment remained bearish because of corruption.

‘This affects the perception of the country. it’s more reputational, more than anything, because fundamentally, the companies are strong,’ Panlilio told reporters on the sidelines of MAP’s general membership meeting on Wednesday.

‘It’s important that something should happen. I think people are expecting that certain actions are done to prove that the government means change and means to clean up itself,’ he pointed out.

A decline in market value essentially means that the share prices of companies are going down due to investors choosing to sell their stocks.

These billion-peso companies, including giants like SM Investments Corp. and Ayala Corp., are now being valued lower, according to Ron Acoba, Trading Edge Consultancy chief investment strategist.

This may hurt investors who previously bought shares with the intention of gaining profit in the belief that the share price would appreciate over time.

‘With valuations lower, investors in general are facing significant losses,’ Acoba told the Inquirer in a text message.

‘The mid- to long-term impact depends on how the government responds credible reforms and accountability could restore trust and drive recovery, while weak or selective action may lead to prolonged undervaluation, capital flight, and slower economic momentum,’ he added.

Acoba likewise warned that the market’s lackluster performance would discourage investors from coming to the Philippines, instead preferring stronger markets, such as the United States, whose stocks have been seeing record performances in the past months.

Bank secrecy lifting

In order to rebuild public trust, Lim urged financial executives to comply with regulations, as this would also help attract investment and create opportunities for economic growth.

For its part, the SEC, a member of the Anti-Money Laundering Council, recently voiced its support for the lifting of the bank secrecy law to aid in the government investigation of anomalous flood control projects.

‘As a corporate and capital market regulator, the SEC welcomes the proposed easing of our bank secrecy laws as a necessary measure to uphold trust and confidence in the Philippine capital market and overall economy,’ Lim said.

Several bills are currently pending before the House of Representatives for the lifting of the bank secrecy law, primarily to promote transparency and tackle corruption in the government.

Reasonable ground

Generally, the amendments seek to empower the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas to inquire into and examine deposits when there is reasonable ground to believe that fraud, serious irregularity, or unlawful activity has been committed by certain individuals or entities.

‘The ability to access critical financial information, particularly in cases of insider trading, market manipulation, and investment fraud, will significantly enhance the enforcement capabilities of the SEC. More importantly, it sends a clear message that the capital markets are governed by transparency and accountability,’ Lim noted.

The bank secrecy law has often been used as a shield for owners of bank accounts in cases of violations of Republic Act No. 8799, or the Securities Regulation Code, and Republic Act No. 11232, or the Revised Corporation Code of the Philippines, among other laws implemented by the SEC, limiting the enforcement capacities of the SEC.

REITs reform

Lim clarified, however, that Congress would need to determine to what extent it intends to liberalize bank secrecy and whether certain exemptions should still be allowed.

He also promised that the SEC would strengthen the role of independent directors, reform the Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) sector, and champion financial literacy to restore trust in capital markets.

REITs are companies that own and operate income-generating real estate, and investors who buy their shares earn a return from rental income.

Lim said the goal is to show the world that ‘in the Philippines, doing good and doing well can truly go hand in hand.’

Several senators have welcomed the appointment of Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin ‘Boying’ Remulla as the new ombudsman.

Senate President Vicente Sotto III believes Remulla’s extensive experience in the field of investigation will work to his advantage in his new post.

‘It’s a big deal that he has a vast background in investigation at the Department of Justice (DOJ), and he will bring it with him at the Ombudsman,’ Sotto told reporters.

‘He is the tribune and protector of the people, fearless in the search for truth and justice,’ he added.

Decisive, impartial action

Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian said Remulla’s appointment comes at a particularly crucial time for the country.

‘As a former justice secretary, he brings with him extensive knowledge of the country’s major corruption cases and the workings of our justice system. The nation now looks to him for decisive and impartial action in the fight against corruption,’ he said in a statement.

‘This appointment should send a clear signal that corruption, abuse of power, and other forms of misconduct have no place in government and that restoring public trust begins with holding everyone, regardless of rank, accountable under the law,’ added Gatchalian.

Sen. Alan Cayetano also approved of Remulla’s appointment but urged the public to watch him closely.

‘Give Boying Remulla a clean slate, then let’s keep an eye on what he will do,’ Cayetano said in a press briefing.

Dissenting voices

Sen. Imee Marcos dissented from her peers and questioned the move of her brother, President Marcos, to appoint Remulla.

‘I think what we need is a People’s Ombudsman one who is credible, trustworthy, and one who is not an accomplice of anybody,’ she said.

Remulla’s was a ‘forced appointment of a person who is unqualified, has pending cases, and is tainted with injustice,’ she added.

Sen. Ronald dela Rosa also said he has no problem with Remulla taking over the Office of the Ombudsman since it is the prerogative of the President.

However, Dela Rosa said he finds it strange for Remulla to announce he would prioritize investigations into Vice President Sara Duterte’s alleged misuse of confidential funds.

‘Why is his first order of the day already focused on VP Sara Duterte? Why not focus on the anomalous flood control projects?,’ Dela Rosa asked in a radio interview.

‘Nothing should be ignored’

For its part, Malacañang expressed confidence on Wednesday that Remulla would fulfill his mandate as Ombudsman for the interest of the entire country and not just for a select few, not even for the Marcos administration’s political agenda.

‘His appointment as Ombudsman must be marked by transparency and accountability that those who should be held accountable must indeed be held accountable. Ombudsman Remulla works for the entire nation and not for any single sector or group of Filipinos,’ Palace press officer Claire Castro said in a briefing.

She brushed aside allegations that Remulla’s focus will be on investigating the cases against Vice President Sara Duterte.

‘Whatever needs to be investigated must be investigated nothing should be ignored or brushed aside. Whatever the public has the right to know must be properly looked into by the Ombudsman,’ Castro stressed.

Involve the public

Meanwhile, professor Roland Simbulan, vice chair of the public policy center Center for People Empowerment in Governance, told the Inquirer on Wednesday that Remulla had a ‘good track record’ as justice secretary, so ‘all he has to do is continue doing what he’s supposed to do at the Ombudsman.’

Remulla has pledged to establish a press office at the Office of the Ombudsman so he can conduct regular interviews with the media and provide updates on the pending cases in his new office.

Simbulan said that while this is a welcome move, Remulla should also involve the citizenry in the fight against corruption by providing updates on ongoing investigations to anticorruption organizations.

‘You cannot just initiate successful institutional reforms for the citizens by yourself. You can only do that if you have the people by your side,’ he pointed out.

Challenge for Remulla

For veteran activist and former Bayan Muna Rep. Teddy Casiño, one of the organizers of the Sept. 21 anticorruption rallies in Manila, Remulla should disprove the ‘popular notion’ that appointees were only meant to protect the President and even their allies.

‘The challenge for Ombudsman Remulla is to prosecute everyone involved in corruption, starting with the highest officials of the land,’ Casiño said. ‘This includes the Vice President, members of the Cabinet, members of the House and Senate, other executive officials, and their conspirators in the private sector.’

Remulla should embody the protest call that all those involved should be held accountable, Casiño said.

”Lahat ng sangkot, dapat managot, maging sino ka man.’ That should be his mantra,’ he stressed.

And ‘if he wants the people to help him go after the corrupt, publishing the SALNs is the first step,’ Casiño added.

After the shock over massive anomalies in flood control projects, now come more jaw-droppers from the questionable costing of farm-to-market roads (FMRs).

Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian revealed on Wednesday that over P10 billion worth of FMRs programmed under the 2023 and 2024 national budgets have been ‘extremely overpriced.’

One project, for example, cost 23 times more than the standard price set by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), while others saw markups of up to 70 percent, further bloating the project cost.

These discoveries were made at the hearing of the Senate committee on finance, which Gatchalian chairs, on the proposed P176.7-billion budget of the Department of Agriculture.

Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said the DPWH set a P15,000 per meter standard cost for FMRs, but this could go as low as P10,000 if the ’30 percent’ markup was trimmed.

Gatchalian noted that many FMRs funded under the General Appropriations Act (GAA) under 2024 Fiscal Year (FY) cost P30,000 per meter, or twice that of the P15,000 benchmark set by the DPWH.

‘Cost overshoot’

The Bicol region logged the biggest number of FMR projects with what Gatchalian called a ‘cost overshoot.’

The region’s 80 projects could have cost only P520 million, but went up to P1.7 billion because of the 68-percent markup amounting to P1.18 billion.

This was followed by Eastern Visayas with 33 projects that were allocated P791 million, with a 70 percent, or P555 million, cost overshoot. This meant that the projects should have cost only P236 million without the markups.

Topping the list of extremely overpriced projects was the ongoing road concreting in Barangay San Roque in Tacloban City.

The 2024 GAA allocated P100 million for the project, which only has an actual length of 0.287 kilometers, putting its cost per meter at P348,432.06 or 23 times more than the P15,000 DPWH standard price.

In addition, the project’s contractor could not be found in the DPWH Civil Works Contracts Database.

‘This is not just extremely overpriced,’ Gatchalian said. ‘[It is] extremely, extremely, extremely overpriced.’

‘Have you not detected this extreme overpricing? If the P15,000 [cost per meter] is already overpriced in your opinion, this one is P348,000 per meter,’ he told Tiu Laurel.

The agriculture chief said such figures were ‘shocking,’ but added that these questions were better answered by the project implementer, the DPWH.

Co project

It was also revealed in the same hearing that another overpriced project in Albay was handled by Hi-Tone Construction and Development Corp., which was co-founded by Christopher Co, brother of former Ako Bicol Rep. Elizaldy ‘Zaldy’ Co.

Zaldy Co, who recently resigned as congressman, chaired the powerful committee on appropriations of the House of Representatives from July 2022 to January 2025.

The concreting of FMRs from Barangay Kidaco to Barangay San Roque in Daraga, Albay, was allocated a P46-million budget in the 2024 GAA and had a length of only 0.37 kilometers but cost P124,324.32 per meter over eight times the standard P15,000.

Other areas that were flagged with extremely overpriced projects under the 2024 GAA were Camarines Sur (P263,157.89 per meter), Bulacan (P193,548.39), and Eastern Samar (P169,902.91).

‘For me, this is an obvious sign of corruption,’ Gatchalian said.

Tiu Laurel had vowed to look into the matter.

Familiar contractors

Gatchalian further revealed that three contractors who bagged the most number of FMR projects were also among the top 15 firms that secured the biggest amount of flood control projects nationwide, as revealed by President Marcos last August.

These three were EGB Construction Corp., Hi-Tone, and Road Edge Trading and Development Services.

EGB cornered P242.1 million worth of FMR project awards for FY 2024, which was the second highest on Gatchalian’s list, only behind GCI Construction and Development Corp., which bagged the largest number of projects at P288.5 million.

Hi-Tone bagged the third biggest FMR awards at P221.8 million, while Road Edge got P98 million.

No coincidence

Gatchalian said it was no coincidence that the Bicol region topped the total number of overpriced FMRs, with Hi-Tone cornering the third-biggest road contracts.

‘I think it’s not coincidental that the biggest region that got FMRs is Region 5 (Bicol Region), and the company that got the third biggest number of contracts was connected to Zaldy Co,’ Gatchalian said in Filipino.

These fresh revelations come on the heels of a major corruption scandal involving flood control projects, which prompted congressional inquiries and the creation of an independent commission to investigate the suspected collusion between lawmakers, government officials, and contractors to embezzle billions of pesos from the country’s coffers.

Amid all this, a nationwide and widespread Sept. 21 protest took place, and rumors of a coup emerged, which the military later denied.