MANILA — Thousands of demonstrators, including Roman Catholic clergy, took to the streets across the Philippines on Sunday to demand the prosecution of lawmakers and officials tied to a widespread corruption scandal involving flood control projects.
A church-led main rally gathered at a “people power” monument along EDSA, where police estimated about 5,000 people, many wearing white, had assembled by midday. Left-wing groups held a separate demonstration at Manila’s main park calling for the immediate resignation and prosecution of all those implicated.
The protests come after revelations that hundreds of flood control projects were irregular, producing substandard, defective or nonexistent infrastructure in a nation repeatedly battered by floods and extreme weather. Demonstrators called for members of Congress, government officials and construction company owners responsible for the irregular contracts to be jailed and ordered to return stolen funds. One protester wore a shirt that read, “No mercy for the greedy.”
“What is stolen is a crime, but when dignity and lives are taken, these are sins against fellow human beings, against the country, and against God,” said the Rev. Flavie Villanueva, a Catholic priest who has supported families of victims of past crackdowns. “Jail all the corrupt and jail all the killers,” he told the crowd.
Authorities deployed more than 17,000 police officers across metropolitan Manila. The Malacañang presidential palace complex was placed under security lockdown, with key access roads and bridges sealed off by anti-riot police, trucks and barbed wire.
There were isolated calls for the military to withdraw support from the Marcos administration, a notable demand in a country with a history of leaders toppled partly over plunder allegations. The Armed Forces of the Philippines rejected any appeal for unconstitutional action and welcomed a statement signed by at least 88 mostly retired generals, including three former chiefs of staff, condemning such moves. “The unified voice of our retired and active leaders reaffirms that the Armed Forces of the Philippines remains a pillar of stability and a steadfast guardian of democracy,” the military said.
Since President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. raised the flood control anomalies in his state of the nation address in July, investigators have taken action against suspects. Authorities have jailed at least seven public works officers linked to one project, sought executives of Sunwest Corp., and frozen about 12 billion pesos (roughly $206 million) in assets connected to suspects. Former government engineer Henry Alcantara has returned 110 million pesos (about $1.9 million) in kickbacks and said he would return more.
Marcos has pledged that many of the at least 37 senators, members of Congress and construction executives now implicated would be jailed by Christmas. Protesters said they want faster accountability and the recovery of stolen funds, citing ostentatious purchases—private jets, luxury cars and mansions—allegedly bought with ill-gotten money.
AP journalists Joeal Calupitan and Aaron Favila contributed to this report.