MANILA, Philippines — Former senator and now ML Party-list Rep. Leila de Lima on Sunday lashed out at lawmakers involved in anomalous flood-control projects, saying they should be jailed.
“You should all resign together… you do not belong in Congress or the Senate, you belong in jail,” she said at the “Baha sa Luneta” rally.
De Lima said that lawmakers implicated in the flood control scandal should step down rather than continue serving in congress.
She called on Filipinos to demand accountability from those involved in widespread corruption.
“I am here to stress that those responsible must be held accountable… I urge our fellow citizens, if you are just at home, to come out and join us so we can show our anger at what is happening in this scandal,” she said, noting that the controversy was among the worst in recent memory.
De Lima also urged protesters to remain peaceful, warning that destabilizers could exploit disorder to justify crackdowns.
“I call on rallyists to avoid chaos… that is what the opportunists and destabilizers want, so that we will fall into turmoil. Violence is not the solution. The solution is the swift accountability and imprisonment of those who must answer,” she stressed
Linking the protests to the anniversary of Martial Law, De Lima cautioned that unrest could once again be used as a pretext for repression.
“This is very important — let us hold those responsible to account, and let us show the whole world that we can still call for reforms and change in a peaceful way. Today is the anniversary of Martial Law; we must avoid chaos. Because if violence erupts, we could once again face Martial Law, and many harsh human rights violations will be committed against our fellow citizens,” she warned
The “Baha sa Luneta” rally, held on the 53rd anniversary of Martial Law, gathered broad coalitions from academe, civil society, and political groups to condemn corruption and press for accountability. Protesters converged from Quezon City, Edsa, and other points across Metro Manila before assembling at Luneta.
De Lima, who reentered politics this year as a party-list lawmaker following her release from detention, vowed to pursue reforms in government procurement and infrastructure spending. “The people are tired of excuses. Those who stole public funds should be made to answer,” she said
