THOUSANDS of demonstrators at Rizal Park in Manila and the EDSA Shrine in Quezon City on Sunday expressed their rage over massive corruption in government uncovered during investigations of anomalous flood control projects.
Violence broke out as demonstrators from Rizal Park clashed with police as they tried to march to Malacañang.
At the “Baha sa Luneta: Aksyon laban sa Korapsyon” rally, speakers denounced anomalies in public works contracts and kickbacks to public officials.
Teddy Casiño, chairman of Bagong Alyansang Makabayan, told Agence France-Presse his group was demanding not only the return of stolen funds but prison time for those involved.
“Corruption requires people to go to the streets and express their outrage in the hope of pressuring government to actually do their jobs,” Casiño said.
Former lawmaker Liza Maza told The Manila Times her group had long been preparing for the Rizal Park rally.
“A lot of different sectors — especially the youth — came together for one cause: to demand justice from the rampant corruption in our country,” said Maza.
Former Social Welfare and Development secretary Judy Taguiwalo echoed Maza’s sentiments, crediting the youth for spearheading the series of protests that led to the “Baha sa Luneta” rally.
Marc Batac of the Department of Community Development at the University of the Philippines Diliman said the divergent political factions joining the protest is “not our weakness… but our strength.”
“Our protest is not about supporting any one politician; our team is the masses — the hardworking and taxpaying Filipinos from every corner of the country,” Batac said.
Former senator and now ML Party-list Rep. Leila de Lima lashed out at lawmakers linked to anomalous projects, demanding that they step down and face prosecution.
Gabriela Rep. Sarah Elago followed with a fiery denunciation of corruption, political dynasties, and what she called a “rotten system of governance.”
“We are here today, enraged at corruption! We are here to show that we have not forgotten our history. Fifty-three years have passed, and yet thieves and the corrupt remain in power. Will you allow this?” she asked, drawing loud shouts of “No!”
Other speakers pressed for investigations into “ghost” and “failed” projects and urged decisive action against contractors and DPWH officials allegedly complicit.
They welcomed President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s creation of the Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) but demanded that it act without hesitation.
Early arrivals at the rally included advocacy groups Gabriela Women’s Party-list, Health Alliance for Democracy, and Karapatan.
Religious groups also joined, including members of the Dominican Sisters of St. Catherine de Siena. Sister Trisha de Casteo, O.P., said they came to “bring peace and enlightenment” amid the controversy.
Youth and student organizations — Kabataan, Makabayan bloc, League of Filipino Students, Sinag Bayan, and the Student Movement of the Philippines — swelled the crowd.
Celebrities such as Angel Aquino, Jodi Sta. Maria, and Maris Racal later made appearances.
At midday, rallyists began to march to Malacañang, chanting, linking arms, singing, and carrying effigies to dramatize their call for transparency and restitution.
Tear gas
At Mendiola, the marchers were stopped by a phalanx of riot police.
A commotion erupted after masked men dressed in black hurled firebombs, rocks and objects at police deployed near the Peace Arch.
Witnesses said the police fired tear gas at the marchers to disperse them.
Some demonstrators reportedly seized police equipment, including shields, bags, and even bulletproof vests, which were later seen being carried or worn by masked individuals.
Thick black smoke rose from under the LRT railway on Recto Avenue, where groups had set fire to tarpaulins, plastic materials, and placards. Malacañang condemned the groups that instigated the violence on Mendiola.
Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan), the organizer of the “Baha sa Luneta” protest, said the group involved in the clash at Mendiola was “not affiliated with Bayan.”
“We don’t know who the groups were, but we can sense their anger,” Bayan Secretary General Renato Reyes Jr. said in a Facebook post.
The incident prompted Manila Mayor Isko Moreno Domagoso to enforce a 10 p.m. to 4 a.m. curfew for minors in the city.
Thugs
In a television interview, Presidential Communications Office (PCO) Undersecretary Claire Castro said those who triggered the unrest are “thugs” out to sow chaos against the government.
“These are not rallyists. These are thugs. You can see that they want to do nothing but destroy the government. It seems like they want to overthrow the government. And who is used to this kind of harassment and this kind of destruction? Who do they want to overthrow? They definitely committed a crime,” Castro said.
She expressed concern that the incidents would cast doubt on others who took to the streets to air their genuine sentiments and advocacies.
Castro said the President “is monitoring what’s happening because peace and order is needed, and the protest also needs to be peaceful.”
Marcos was scheduled to fly to the US for the high-level discussions in 80th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York.
He decided instead to send Foreign Affairs Secretary Teresa Lazaro to represent him so he could “focus on local issues.”
A few kilometers from Mendiola, the September Twenty-One People’s Movement Against Corruption (STOPCorruption) was holding its own demonstration in Sampaloc.
The parallel protest united groups across the political and civic spectrum: Filipinos Do Not Yield (FDNY) Movement, Alyansa Bantay Kapayapaan at Demokrasya (ABKD), Liga Independencia (LIPI), People’s Alliance for Democracy and Reforms (PADERngDemokrasya), Kabataang Manunulat at Artista para sa Sining at Kultura (KaMaSKaRa), Alyansa ng Kabataan sa Komunidad (AKK), Cavite Runners for West PH Sea, Samahan ng Maralita sa Parola Binondo, Parola Youth, Karamay, BBM Calamba Warriors, and PBBM, Inc.
The march began along Nicanor Reyes Street and wound its way to Mendiola, where organizers said their choice of endpoint was deliberate — a bid to “reframe” Mendiola’s legacy. Instead of being remembered only as a ground for defiance, they wanted it to stand as a venue for rallying behind President Marcos Jr.’s anti-corruption drive.
Marchers carried banners praising Marcos while demanding punishment for crooked officials. To dramatize their anger, they dragged and smashed an effigy dubbed Paldong Kurakot, representing politicians and contractors accused of siphoning off public funds.
The Quezon City Police District (QCPD) estimated that over 15, 000 people joined the indignation rally at the People Power Monument (PPM) on EDSA.
The QCPD described the demonstration as “peaceful and quiet,” but made no mention of a short but heated argument between Duterte supporters and detractors near the EDSA gate of Camp Aguinaldo.
At the sidelines of the “One Trillion March” protests, former senior associate justice Antonio Carpio told The Times that President Marcos must satisfactorily resolve the flood control controversy to save his credibility and his family as well.
Carpio noted that the President had vetoed only P29 billion in budget insertions.
Asked about the alleged involvement of Senators Jinggoy Estrada and Joel Villanueva, who were said to have made huge budget insertions, Carpio said he was only confident that the ongoing investigations would identify and make those responsible accountable.
Akbayan Representatives Chel Diokno, Percival Cendana and Dadah Kiram called on the Marcos administration to guarantee that it would hold responsible, through the ICI, all those found directly involved in anomalous flood control projects.
Diokno said it was not enough that the speaker of the House of Representatives has stepped down and the secretary of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) has been replaced.
“Those responsible from Congress down to DPWH and contractors must be criminally held liable and they must return the money they stole from the taxes of the people’s hard-earned money,” he said.
ARLIE O. CALALO, KRISTINA MARALIT AND AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
