Bakit nga ba tila iniiwas ng ilan si Marcos sa pananagutan gayong siya ang gumawa ng budget, siya ang nagpalobo ng unprogrammed funds na ginamit sa ma-anomalyang flood control projects? Siya din ang nag-approve ng releases ng unprogrammed funds. Siya ang nagpanatili ng sistema ng pork barrel o congressional allocations, at siya ang patuloy na nagbubukas ng pinto para sa korapsyon sa proposed budget para sa 2026.
Thai newspaper The Nation reported on Nov. 3, 2025 that the Philippines will be importing 300,000 metric tons (MT) of rice from Thailand in January 2026, four months after Malacanang stopped rice imports.
The ethanol and wastewater spill from the Gokongwei-owned Universal Robina Corp. (URC) distillery plant in Bais City has caused a major fish kill in the coastal waters of Bais and Manjuyod town in Negros Oriental, thus polluting the Tañon Strait Protected Seascape (TSPS), regarded as one of the country’s most important marine biodiversity areas.
Their argument is that everything sanguine must be based on a weaker peso, never mind if it means shoveling mountains of pesos to buy the almighty dollar.
The congressman’s record on the ground tells a more complicated story. During his term as mayor, Cayton facilitated the approval of an exploration permit for Woggle Corp. — a decision that effectively opened the door to renewed mining activity in upland barangays already reeling from the environmental impact of earlier projects.
Torres was quoted as saying a culture of impunity does not exist in our version of paradise. He was not expected to say the opposite in the presence of the honorable officials of the National Police Commission, the agency responsible for supervising the Philippine National Police.
It is not yet known when other respondents would join Duterte. Misery loves company. It must be terribly lonely for Duterte to stay alone in his cell. How soon would Sens. Bato de la Rosa and Bong Go join him? Only the ICC knows.
TikTok and social media must be controlled with viable guardrails, tamed with operational rules and barred from promoting bashing and stan culture.
The fish rots first at the head, as Erasmus said. As it is, the entire government has to be indicted. The corruption issue has become a cul-de-sac.
The 2026 budget perpetuates pork barrel corruption and betrays public trust.
