by jariusbondoc | Sep 18, 2026 | Gotcha
It’s an open secret that our youths learn corruption at the Sangguniang Kabataan. That’s because of the bad influence of elders in barangay councils.
Here’s the modus operandi:
There’s a “kontratista” at the barangay council. He is usually a friend of the chairman and council members. They let him handle all purchases and expenditures. These range from multimillion-peso construction of barangay halls or acquisition of service vehicles, all the way to the smallest birthday gift to senior citizens and snacks during council meetings.
The kontratista overprices the expenditures and purchases by 30 to 300 percent, or even more. He splits the loot with the chairman, the barangay treasurer, and councilmen. Everybody happy, everybody quiet.
Kickbacks per year can total hundreds of thousands to tens of millions of pesos. That’s why aspirants for chairman, treasurer, councilman kill for the post.
A spouse, offspring, or councilman usually succeeds the termed-out chairman. The kontratista stays.
The Sangguniang Kabataan chairperson automatically sits in the barangay council as ex-officio member. S/he also automatically partakes off the kickbacks.
The SK has its own project expenditures and purchases. These two are done through the kontratista. Again, these are overpriced 30 to 300 percent, or more. The SK chairperson, treasurer, and youth kagawad share the loot.
It’s easy to spot the kontratista. S/he’s the one who wears too much jewelry. The crook invariably flaunts the fruits of her/his corruption. S/he also hovers around meetings and huddles at barangay halls, eavesdropping for new potential deals.
The Dept. of Interior and Local Government oversees the 42,010 barangay and 41,995 SK councils. Sec. Jonvic Remulla reportedly strives to clean up local government units.
Meanwhile the Ombudsman has power to discipline crooked barangay and SK officials. “I can dismiss those who do not do their jobs,” Sec. Jonvic’s brother Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla told the Senate finance committee on Sept. 3. “All we need is a substantiated complaint, a complaint that people will stand up to, will try to prove to us that we can utilize this power given to us by the law.”
May the Remulla brothers clean up sleazy barangay councils and SKs. DILG can construct more provincial, city, and municipal jails to lock up barangay and SK crooks. Multiply Ombudsman personnel to handle complaints against barangay and SK councils.
Congress should not postpone barangay and SK elections. It should instead enact laws for more transparency with barangay and SK funds, stronger people’s audits, and stricter performance rules for grassroots officials.
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Stop China’s continual bullying of the Asian Games. In 20th ASIAD, Sept. 19 – Oct. 4, let Taiwan compete as Taiwan.
At today’s opening ceremonies in Nagoya, China will again compel organizers to make Taiwan athletes wear uniforms of Chinese Taipei. This demeans not only Taiwan’s sportsmen and women, but also countries that allow bullying even in sports.
“This indignity has gone on long enough,” international relations specialist Lindell Lucy writes in Japan Times. “Before the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, more than 131,000 people signed online petitions calling on the International Olympic Committee to allow Taiwan to compete as ‘Taiwan’ rather than ‘Chinese Taipei.’
“Although Taiwanese athletes were ultimately required to attend the Opening Ceremony wearing Chinese Taipei uniforms, Japanese TV announcers, who were not bound by IOC rules, introduced the athletes as representing Taiwan. The incident sparked a massive outpouring of appreciation across Taiwan.”
Filipino sports editors, writers, and commentators can do the same in ASIAD. Taiwan, not Chinese Taipei, is the Philippines’ closest northern neighbor. The Philippine island of Y’Ami (Mavulis) is only 98 kilometers from the nearest Taiwanese territory, Orchid Island.
At the Paris 2024 Olympics, Taiwan’s men’s badminton doubles team won its second consecutive gold medal, defeating China for the championship, Lucy recalls. “Unfortunately, the victory was overshadowed by a heavy-handed crackdown on fans holding towels and signs bearing the word ‘Taiwan.’
“Images and video of Olympic security staff confiscating the items, as well as one Chinese spectator forcibly snatching a sign from the hands of a Taiwanese fan, went viral around the world, prompting Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs to issue a statement condemning the incidents.”
There’s no such thing as Chinese Taipei. Taiwan consists of 14 counties and 23 cities, with Taipei the capital.
Taiwan is independent and democratic. It has an elected President and Parliament. Its navy and coastguard patrol its waters against Chinese intruders.
China Communist Party has never controlled Taiwan. Yet it flexes economic and military muscle to make Asian neighbors treat Taiwan as a CCP domain.
CCP propagandizes to take over Taiwan by 2027. It also claims to own Okinawa.
The Philippines is also a victim of CCP expansionism. CCP’s navy, coastguard, and maritime militia vessels menace Batanes, Panatag (Scarborough) Shoal, Kalayaan (Spratly) Islands, and Palawan’s Recto (Reed) Bank.
CCP likewise trespasses waters of Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Vietnam.
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by jariusbondoc | Sep 16, 2026 | Gotcha
Once again I give space to these reports by Jamaica Mae Digo of Tzu Chi Eye Clinic:
Weeks ago medical director Dr. Bernardita Navarro received 20 persons deprived of liberty for consultations and performed cataract surgery on seven more. They came from the maximum-, medium- and minimum-security compounds of New Bilibid Prison, Muntinlupa. The Bureau of Corrections brought them to the Eye Center in Sta. Mesa, Manila.
PDLs who used to be cataract-blind returned for post-operative checkups. Unlike before, they now walked on their own and assisted fellow inmates who struggled visually.
PDL Lito, 61, served as eyes for Donnie, 51. Lito underwent surgery last year. Restored vision reinforced his commitment to his mission inside prison: teaching PDLs to read and write. “Immense gratitude to you for changing my life,” he smiled. “Now that I can see well, I’m able to read and gain more knowledge to share with students.”
Tzu Chi volunteer optometrist Dr. Adriene Lim prescribed Lito eyeglasses for further improvement. Donnie underwent operation. Eyesight restored, he cried for joy. “I’ve struggled for three years. Those were difficult times. That’s why I’m so happy that I can see again.”
Donnie once lived comfortably, managing his family’s hotel. One bad decision led to his greatest regret. At 30 he was sentenced to life in prison for kidnapping. Good conduct and rehab participation reduced his term.
Fate continued to challenge Donnie. Blinding cataracts developed in both eyes. His family had emigrated years back, leaving him with no one to ask for help. Just as he was losing hope to turn over a new leaf, BuCor and Tzu Chi’s surgical partnership came like answered prayer.
Donnie can now look forward to his future with hopeful eyes. “I’ve lost my youth, I want to walk the straight path and hopefully start a family of my own. I will forever be indebted to Tzu Chi for helping us.”
The eye center’s optometry team flew to Tagbilaran to support the local Tzu Chi office’s mission at Bohol jail. Lugging their own equipment and supplies, Dr. Adriene’s eight-member team provided refraction tests and dispensed eye drops and reading glasses to 540 male and female PDLs and jail guards. They committed to provide lenses for those who didn’t get such necessity on the spot.
The mission was special for Dr. Adriene. “We don’t often have the opportunity to reach these people, so when told of this project, I joined to give them the best we can offer. Give them the comfort of vision. It’s the only thing they now have to improve themselves and their skills.”
PDL Allan learned to paint when imprisoned four years ago. His vibrant pictures are a source of joy and income to support his wife and child. Poor vision threatened to take away his chance to make it up to his family. It turned out that all he needed were reading glasses.
PDL Theo, 48, finds comfort in the Bible since imprisonment two years back. Failing vision impairs his reading. The glasses he received brought him huge relief and spiritual peace. “Faith matters more to us while we’re here. It helps keep us positive and learn from our mistakes. I’m grateful that you visited today and shared your kindness. Though we are prisoners, you came out of concern for us.”
Jail Supt. Thomas Diaz Jr. echoed this gratitude, adding that the project supports the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology’s Plan 2040, which includes PDLs’ social reintegration. “They’re always regarded as ‘the last, the lost, the least’ but today you came here and made them feel that they come first in your heart.”
Natalia, 44, a Russian who served jail time in foreign lands and longs for her four children, received reading glasses and eyedrops. “I’m so pleased to be given attention today. I appreciate your coming here. I’m a single mother with no money. Nobody is helping me. No one is supporting me. You came and made my day.”
Patients’ words of gratitude are the reason volunteer optometrist Dr. Siu Yu Lam couldn’t retire from her profession 10 years back. She cherishes the opportunity to assist with Tzu Chi. “Volunteering gives me so much satisfaction. That I can do something for my community makes me happy because it gives my life value. Your capability is appreciated by those who need it. It may seem like a small effort on your part, but for them it matters a lot.”
Volunteer Joseph Co, Tzu Chi-Bohol medical head, said the optical mission is only one of many medical interventions for PDLs. This project fulfills Tzu Chi founder Dharma Master Cheng Yen’s goal to purify people’s minds and harmonize society. “We consider them patients in need of medical services, and every patient should be treated equally. We don’t look at their backgrounds, just as patients who need our care.”
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Tzu Chi Eye Clinic accepts indigent eye patients. Simply set an appointment by texting your name, birthday, address and eye problem to 0908-811-4709. A specialist will see you at the appointed date and time. Checkups, medicines and operations are funded through PhilHealth and supplemented through donations.
Address: 1000 Cordillera cor. Lubiran Streets, Bacood, Sta. Mesa, Manila. Clinic schedules: Mondays to Fridays, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Offering services for cataracts, glaucoma, eye tumors, squint and diseases of the cornea and retina.
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by jariusbondoc | Sep 11, 2026 | Gotcha
For weeks after Andres Bonifacio’s execution, Gregoria de Jesus searched the mountains of Maragondon, Cavite for his remains. She felt it her duty as wife and keeper of the Katipunan’s top secrets to give the Supremo a proper burial.
Though hardened by three years of revolution, her mission was daunting. She trekked dawn to dusk, eating only what the forest offered: unripened fruits. All in vain. “My grimy tattered clothing wouldn’t have kindled had I tried to burn it,” she remarked.
That was one of many trials Gregoria bore as Lakambini of the freedom fight. She had to learn to ride, organize, lead. With granduncle General Mariano Alvarez she plotted initial skirmishes against the colonizers. She stood by Bonifacio opposing KKK factionalists at the Tejeros Convention.
She lost to smallpox her only child with Bonifacio. Years later she lost at infancy two of eight children with second husband, composer-general Julio Nakpil.
Aside from providing historians details of the struggle for liberty, she preserved for posterity two literary opuses:
• Bonifacio’s poem, “Anong pag-ibig pa ang hihigit kaya sa pagkadalisay at pagkadakila, gaya ng pag-ibig sa tinubuang lupa…”
• Nakpil’s Katipunan hymn “Marangal na Dalit ng Katagalugan,” which opens with “Mabuhay, mabuhay yaong kalayaan, at pasulungin ang puri’t kabanalan.”
“Lakambini: Gregoria De Jesus” was rescreened on National Heroes’ Day, Aug. 31st, at Bantayog ng mga Bayani, Quezon City. The mostly female viewers, probably some of the males too, were in tears when the lights turned on at the end. At the open forum they lamented knowing so little about Filipino heroines. And that’s precisely why producer Ellen Ongkeko-Marfil, Gregoria descendant Karen Tañada and historian Michael “Xiao” Chua organized the reshowing.
“Lakambini” took 10 years to complete. It began 2015 as a biopic of Gregoria, portrayed by Lovi Poe, with Rocco Nacino as Bonifacio and Spanky Manikan as Nakpil, directed by Jeffrey Jeturian from Rody Vera’s screenplay. Shooting encountered huge obstacles, including unexpected rejection by that year’s Metro Manila Film Festival and sponsors.
Ellen and indie troupe Pelikulove persisted. The project turned into a meta-docu, looking into the production setbacks and triumphs while incorporating the historical dramatization. Stage actress Elora Espano and veteran Gina Pareño came to portray Gregoria in midlife and late years. Paulo Avelino joined as Nakpil in lieu of Manikan who died in 2017, with Arjanmar Rebeta directing.
“Lakambini” premiered in 2025, Gregoria’s 150th birth anniversary. Ellen and Pelikulove bicycle “Lakambini” nationwide for viewing by students, teachers and interested organizations. For screening schedules and booking requests, visit Lakambini on Facebook or pelikulove.com.
Back to Bantayog ng mga Bayani. Etched among 339 names on the Wall of Remembrance is Edgar “Edjop” Jopson. A contemporary hero, Edjop’s life story is being retold in film as the nation struggles against political amnesia and historical distortions.
“Edjop” will premiere nationwide Sept. 16th. It is an emotionally-charged biopic that spans generations – a portrait of conviction and the cost of standing up to power.
Edjop was a young privileged Ateneo graduate who turned his back on wealth and comfort to confront Ferdinand Marcos’ dictatorship. He became one of the most wanted political dissidents during Marcos’ military rule.
Beginning as moderate head of the National Union of Students of the Philippines, Edjop initially advocated institutional and peaceful societal change. But as the regime turned increasingly violent, shuttering democratic avenues and cracking down on activists, Edjop abandoned corporate prospects to organize labor unions and stand alongside the marginalized.
Edjop was at the forefront of the First Quarter Storm 1970. In a march of a hundred thousand youths to Malacañang on Jan. 30th, he was among delegates invited to meet with the reelected president, who was scheming an unconstitutional third term.
After making them wait for an hour and a half, Marcos faced them before television cameras. Handing Marcos a paper, Edjop said, “Please sign this pledge to not extend beyond the end of your term in 1973.” Marcos glared, “Who are you to tell me what to do? You’re only a son of a grocer!”
When Marcos imposed martial law and began ruling by decree in 1972, Edjop went underground. Captured in June 1979, Edjop was brutalized for 11 days but escaped. He rejoined the U.G. in Mindanao.
On Sept. 20th, 1982 Marcos troops raided Edjop’s hideout in Davao city. Shot in the leg trying to flee, he was brought to camp for tactical interrogation, ie., torture. Next day, the 10th anniversary of martial law, they announced his death by gunshot wounds during a supposed firefight.
“Edjop” the movie incorporates accounts of wife Joy Asuncion, siblings, comrades. Most of all, the perspective of Edjop’s second of three offspring Joyette as she navigates her father’s legacy, seeking her own identity while reflecting on the nation’s travails.
Joyette, only two when Edjop was summarily executed, grew up thinking he abandoned them for his “bayan” (country). She immersed herself in the family business and in running, becoming the first Filipino to finish the grueling Arctic Marathon.
Joyette found out from kith, kin and strangers how esteemed Edjop is in the eyes of others. She produced the film on realizing that Edjop’s “bayan” was, as Benedict Anderson wrote, “an imagined community in which citizens consider themselves a part.” For in the end, “bayan” is one’s family which s/he struggles to uplift.
Elijah Canlas portrays Edjop and Jodi Sta. Maria, Joyette; direction by Katski Flores; co-written with Jade Castro.
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by jariusbondoc | Sep 9, 2026 | Gotcha
Photo from RTV Malacanang/YouTube
Cut the dramatics. Sara Duterte, Bongbong Marcos and Martin Romualdez should just fight each other to political death.
Sara milked dry the publicity ops of her posting of bail at the Quezon City court last Saturday. Begging reporters to not leave her side, she claimed to feel unsafe surrounded by cops at the courthouse.
“Pakiramdam ko papatayin ako anytime tapos ‘sorry’ lang ang sasabihin sa akin kasi, ‘We do not know but we did our jobs.’ Naalala niyo ba si Ninoy Aquino? Napatay sa hagdanan,” she emoted on news cams. “Sino ang mananagot kapag namatay ako? Wala akong tiwala sa pulis, wala akong tiwala sa korte.”
All those tended to hide the facts:
• Sara has 400 bodyguards in the Vice Presidential Security and Protection Group, the only VP to get such privilege. VPSPG consists of soldiers and policemen. It surveils, sweeps and restricts movements at her destinations well before she arrives. It costs taxpayers P240 million a year in salaries. OVP spent additional P55-million special duty allowances for it in July 2022-June 2024.
• Sara posted bail because indicted for grave threats in November 2024 to assassinate BBM and Martin.
• “Grave threats” is also one of four impeachment raps against Sara. Aside from her livestreamed admission to have hired an assassin, she also demonstrated in October 2024 how she’d behead BBM.
• Sara’s father Rody Duterte paid off PNP for his bloody war on drugs. Cops officially killed 6,252 pushers for resisting arrest using rusty .38-caliber revolvers. There’s no record or repository of those “confiscated” handguns.
• Ex-Davao city cop Arturo Lascañas swore to have formed the Davao Death Squad that killed pushers on Duterte’s and later Sara’s orders.
• Since March 2025 Sara often says her father shouldn’t have been flown to the International Criminal Court at The Hague for trial for crimes against humanity. Only last July 29 she told Rody supporters near The Hague jail: “There’s no breakdown of the judicial system in the Philippines. Our judicial courts are functioning. We can go to court, file a complaint, the judge can hear it, the judge can decide.” Now she claims otherwise.
• As Davao city mayor, Sara punched in the face and nape court sheriff Abe Andres in July 2011. The latter was enforcing the judge’s order to evict squatters from a private lot.
• Ninoy Aquino was slain by aviation security airmen at the Manila Airport tarmac in August 1983. He had returned from US exile to convince political archrival dictator Ferdinand Marcos Sr. to give up power. Heroified today, Ninoy knew he’d likely be killed upon arrival, yet still flew to Manila.
Sara wanted to be detained at Camp Crame for photo ops in handcuffs and behind bars, Interior Sec. Jonvic Remulla disclosed Monday. “Ang drama nila, gusto nila makulong siya,” he told reporters. “Hindi kami pumayag. We accorded her the respect that her position deserves.”
Arrangements were then made for the QC Court to open on Saturday for Sara’s bail posting. Judge Maria Angelica P. De Ramos admitted to be Sara’s sis in Sororitas Reginae Juris at San Beda College of Law.
At the courthouse some onlookers chanted, “Duterte, Duterte!”
Two women were let through the phalanx of guards to hug her and plead, “Magpakatatag ka para sa mga anak namin.”
Also on Monday, Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla ordered Martin arrested for P7.44-billion flood fund plunder. Martin was in hospital for cardiovascular ailment and anxiety.
Remulla’s brother Sec. Jonvic enforced the arrest. He took Martin’s mugshot lying on the bed draped with an orange detainee t-shirt, then posted policemen outside the hospital suite.
The Remullas and Martin are fraternity mates in UP Upsilon Sigma Phi. Jonvic, who joined in 1987, and Martin, in 1988, were campus contemporaries.
Fans tout Sara for president in 2028. Pollsters rank her in the lead against undeclared presidential opponents.
BBM and Sara ran as UniTeam in 2022. Both skipped presidential and VP candidates’ debates except for that sponsored by Sonshine Media Network International of Duterte pal Apollo Quiboloy. Quiboloy is presently detained in Pasig for non-bailable human trafficking, sexual abuse and child abuse. The US wants him extradited for the same offenses.
BBM and Sara had a falling out starting 2024.
BBM’s son Rep. Sandro Marcos recently told a TV talk show that he “kinda saw” UniTeam’s collapse. He attributed it to “deep-seated power struggles and political maneuvering by various factions rather than a single person.”
In the Prime Radio-TV interview Aug. 8, he recalled that during the 2022 presidential campaign, he and BBM were called to a Malacañang meeting with Rody Duterte. After being made to wait two hours, Duterte sent three reps to tell them that under a BBM presidency they should be let to name the executive secretary, Senate president, House speaker and key Cabinet posts.
Sandro recalled that upon leaving Malacañang his dad told him, “Alam mo, kulang na lang papatayin na nila ako.”
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by jariusbondoc | Sep 4, 2026 | Gotcha
Photo generated by Gemini
China subsidizes research and development of humanoid robots. On Aug. 17, Hangzhou firm Unitree unveiled a prototype named Superman. It ran 12.66 meters per second, faster than world-record sprinter Usain Bolt’s 12.42 meters per second. Not knowing how to brake, Superman slammed onto a wall and was stretchered away. Two days later, Unitree debuted at Shanghai stock market, where its share price jumped 460 percent.
China has humanoids in the Philippines too. They mimic Beijing’s propaganda, downplaying Chinese aggression in the West Philippine Sea and labeling patriotic protest as US-inspired. So adept are they in treason that Defense Sec. Gilbert Teodoro has had to cajole them to resign.
VP Sara Duterte reacted by gaslighting on Aug. 6: “Pangalanan kung sino ‘yong officials na nagde-defend sa China over WPS issue. Hindi puwedeng magbitaw ng ganoong salita, pero hindi mo naman papangalanan. Suspect kahit ang Presidente kasi walang pangalan.”
Sara is scion of self-professed Xi Jinping lover Rody Duterte. Campaigning for president in 2016, Rody was asked by fishermen what he’d do to protect them from Chinese machine gunning and water cannoning at Panatag (Scarborough) Shoal. He promised: “I will jet ski to the Spratlys, plant the Philippine flag and declare, ‘This is ours’.”
Two weeks into his presidency on July 12, 2016 the Permanent Court of Arbitration rubbished Beijing’s nine-dash line claim over the entire South China Sea. PCA also upheld Philippine exclusive economic zone sovereign rights over Panganiban (Mischief) Reef, which China grabbed in 1995. Rody dismissed the ruling as “mere scrap of paper.”
On Feb. 19, 2018 Rody begged Xi: “Gawin niyo na lang kaming province, parang Fujian, Province of Philippines, Republic of China.”
On June 9, 2019 a China Maritime Militia steel trawler rammed an anchored Filipino wooden boat at Recto (Reed) Bank off Palawan. Twenty-two fishermen were thrown overboard. The trespasser fled, in violation of international maritime rules against hit-and-run. Rody belittled it as “an ordinary sea accident.”
On May 10, 2021 WPS fishermen reminded Rody about his 2016 declaration to defend them. “Panahon ‘yon ng kampanya,” he snorted. “‘Yong biro na ‘yon, ‘yong bravado ko, was pure campaign joke, at kung naniwala kayo I would say you are really stupid.”
VP Sara at first had “no comment” when asked about Chinese menacing at WPS on April 8, 2024. She has since learned to counterattack:
• May 7, 2025: “Bakit ko naman atakihin ang China? Ang problema natin dito ay ang hindi pagtupad sa mga pangako, tulad ng P20-per-kilo na bigas.”
• June 24, 2026: “Our problems in WPS don’t make up our entire relation with China so there’s no reason to lean towards the US. You always have to stay in the middle because you’re not part of the bigger conflict.”
• June 27, 2026: “The administration of President Marcos leans towards the US and is alienating China. I believe that the Philippines shouldn’t be involved in cooperation and competition at the same time with the US and China, being a middle power in the game of supremacy and domination.”
In 2022, Manila started exposing to the world all Chinese harassments. Being the most vocal, Coast Guard Rear Adm. Jay Tarriela was targeted by pro-Beijing commentators for defamation.
Jan. 14, 2026 Tarriela uploaded photos from his lecture in universities about “Why China remains a bully,” with a caricature of Xi. Fifteen of 24 senators signed a resolution of support.
The Chinese embassy protested, calling Tarriela’s lecture “blatant political provocation.” Automatons at the Senate activated:
• Imee Marcos, Jan. 28: “I don’t seek to silence debate or diminish the right of officials to defend Philippine sovereignty. But reckless statements [against China] can have real consequences on our ability to protect national interests, particularly in sensitive areas such as maritime domain.”
• Alan Cayetano, Feb. 9: “The question kay Commodore Tarriela is, officially sanctioned ba yan? Tama lang na tanungin ng Chinese ambassador, bakit? If a general in China makes a caricature of President Bongbong, dapat i-protest ng ating ambassador. We cannot pass this resolution saying Commodore Tarriela is correct because he’s wrong.”
Davao city Mayor Sebastian Duterte joined the fray, Feb. 16: “I hate to see the [Chinese] ambassador having to deal with the behavior that’s unfriendly towards a loving and peaceful neighbor.”
On July 10 state-owned China Daily posted an AI-generated video depicting Filipinos as a monkey controlled by US and Japan hands. Teodoro and Tarriela led the public outcry against it. China robots retaliated:
• Sen. Robin Padilla: “Mr. Tarriela, it was you who drew first blood. This escalation into wartime propaganda was your genius creation. As for the Chinese media, aren’t we all monkeys of different colors in the eyes of white colonizers?”
• Rep. Paolo Duterte: “Why demonize China? China isn’t the only country that has claims on WPS. You know, Gibo, the job of defense secretary is not to give loyalty exams to elected officials. Your job is to strengthen our defense, not to label people who don’t agree with your views. If you want someone to resign, start with yourself because your father is Chinese.”
Sen. Rodante Marcoleta claimed on Feb. 4 that the WPS is a mere Philippine concoction with no geographic coordinates. Critics exposed his ignorance. WPS coordinates are listed in:
• Maritime Zones Act of November 2024 when Marcoleta was congressman, which reinforces the Philippines Baselines Act of 2009;
• 1734 Murillo Velarde Map, 1808 and 1875 Spanish colonial maps, all with depth measurements and which identify the Kalayaan Island Group as Bajos de Paragua and Panatag as Bajo de Masinloc.
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by jariusbondoc | Sep 2, 2026 | Gotcha
Flooded Zapote Junction in Las Piñas City on Saturday afternoon, PNA Photo.
Seven provinces are in state of calamity: Bataan, Bulacan, Cavite, Pampanga, Pangasinan, Tarlac, Zambales. So are 178 cities and municipalities. Two weeks of heavy rains and floods toppled four bridges, demolished 3,200 homes and 2,100 schools and flooded even the elevated North Luzon Expressway.
More than nine million people suffered losses. About 43,500 adults and children evacuated to temporary shelters. At least 60,800 tons of crops were damaged in 62,730 hectares of farmland. Ruined national roads and flood control dikes totaled P6 billion. Sixty-seven health clinics were destroyed.
Leptospirosis from animal urine sickened 5,835; 358 have died. “Leptospirosis is not only a medical condition,” says health care advocate Dr. Tony Leachon. “It’s a condition born of bad governance, lack of accountability and absence of social justice.” Thousands more are down with fever and flu.
Such maladies devastate Filipinos year in and year out. Yet their leaders offer no long-term solutions.
Many of those leaders find no reason to improve. They just switch with spouses, parents, offspring and siblings for national and local positions. Eighty percent of 24 senators and 317 congressmen are political dynasts. Same with 81 percent of provincial governors, 75 percent of city and municipal mayors and 55 percent of 18,191 local officials.
Politicos blame everyone else but themselves for deadly floods. They point to slash-and-burn farmers (kaingeros) for worsening climate change, litterbugs for clogging up waterways and squatters for building shanty towns in hazard zones.
Yet it’s the politicos who plundered P1.7 trillion in flood controls in 2016-2025. None have been convicted nor compelled to restitute their loot. Only a few have been indicted.
If Filipinos should be blamed at all, it’s for electing those plunderers over and over again. Unschooled in basic Math, Science and Reading Comprehension, they have no critical thinking. They thus vote based on celebrity, bombast and political “ayuda.”
Filipinos find scientists unexciting. Technical talk bores them. They do not realize the difference: scientists aim for progress, politicos only desire profit.
Before spending any more billions on flood control, check first if it will work, geologist Mahar Lagmay advises. Malacañang is proposing P107.4-billion flood controls for 2027. Best to wait first for Lagmay’s Project NOAH (Nationwide Operational Assessment of Hazards) to check if those projects are needed to begin with.
Lagmay will use both artificial intelligence and historical data to pinpoint flood-prone areas. NOAH has received P1 billion for it. It has 12 years’ record of rainfall, terrain change and high-resolution hazard maps per locality. When compiled, these can form the bases for regional masterplans. Engineers can then design and execute solutions.
When speaking of engineers, Filipinos must consider only honest ones. Not the DPWH under and assistant secretaries, regional directors and district engineers behind the P1.7-trillion flood control scam, 2016-2025.
At least three masterplans had been drawn up for the national capital:
• The 1941 Frost-Arellano Masterplan aimed to develop a new Quezon City outside Manila. “It shows wide green easements along all original waterways,” says urban designer Paulo Alcazaren. “The planners understood the function of these easements, including stormwater management.” Those were American architect Harry Frost, landscape architect Louis Croft, Filipino architect Juan Arellano and engineer AD Williams of the Bureau of Public Works.
• The 1939 Parsons’ plan for Cebu had similar patterns as Paris, like spokes on a wheel with Arc de Triomphe at the center. The 1898 revolution and a 1903 fire had left a “Cebu Burnt Area.” American architect William Parsons designed six diagonal avenues leading to a central hub. But only three avenues eventually were paved towards Fuente Osmeña Rotunda.
• The World Bank funded in 1977 a Metro Manila Transport, Land Use and Development Plan. Urban planner Felino Palafox Jr. identified Marikina, Cainta and Pasig as the most flood-prone. A Manggahan Floodway was to direct flood waters onto Laguna de Bay. A Parañaque Spillway was to drain out to Manila Bay. Manggahan Floodway was finished in 1986. Parañaque Spillway was never dug. “It’s like having a toilet without a flush,” Palafox laments. In 2009 storm Ondoy deluged the metropolis up to rooftops.
Ex-secretary Manuel Bonoan testified last month that DPWH allotted P500-million “Leadership Fund” to each of 24 senators of the 19th Congress, 2022-2025. Sen. Bong Revilla supposedly got P1.5 billion as chairman of the Senate committee on public works. Congressmen got their own shares. None admit it.
In 2022-2025 then-Speaker Martin Romualdez bagged P57-billion infrastructure insertions, Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism reports. PCIJ does not impute any corruption. But being President Bongbong Marcos’ first cousin helped Romualdez bag the Speakership and consequently the P57 billion.
Romualdez outdid the record of Davao city Rep. Paolo Duterte. The presidential son got P51.8 billion in DPWH allocations in Rody Duterte’s last three years in office, 2020-2022.
Presidential son Sandro Marcos got P39.2 billion, PCIJ adds. Even Marcos critic and Minority Rep. Leandro Leviste admits to getting billions more from DPWH after exposing new undersecretaries in 2025 to be linked to crooked contractors.
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