According to foreign media reports, on September 21, local time, anti-corruption protests called "trillion pesos march" broke out across the Philippines, affecting more than 20 cities in the country.

This is the largest protest that President Marcos has encountered since he came to power in 2022 and is considered to have a symbolic historical significance.On this day in 1972, Marcos' father, former President Marcos, declared national strictness.

Now, Marcos is facing a severe anti-corruption test that could shake the stability of the government.

The largest since taking office

On the same day, people in more than 20 cities in the Philippines walked out on the streets, shouting slogans such as "recovering public funds, pursuing responsibility" to protest the "ghost project" in flood prevention projects and public works corruption.

Participants include churches, students, non-governmental organizations and community groups affected by the flood, and commenters say the crowd spans classes and groups, reflecting the anger of the whole people, not mere political manipulation.

In the capital of Manila, about 4,90,000 protesters gathered in the morning at the Rihanna Park. In the afternoon, more than 15,000 people gathered in front of the People's Force Monument in Queensland, in the district of Manila.

Near the presidential palace, some protesters clashed with police for hours, police used tear gas to try to disperse the crowd and arrested at least 49 people, with police injured in the clash.

This is the largest protest in the Philippines since Marcos' rule.The Philippine military has declared a state of "red alert" as a precautionary measure, according to the World Wide Web.

The flood scandal.

The Philippines, located in the western Pacific typhoon belt, is one of the countries most vulnerable to typhoons and flooding disasters in the world.

Over the past three years, the Philippines has invested approximately 545 billion pesos in flood prevention and other infrastructure projects, but many projects have been exposed to ¡°ghost projects¡± that exist only on paper, while others are of poor quality and high prices.

In July, a series of scandals were uncovered, and President Marcos criticized the issue in his annual State of the Union speech, sparking widespread public anger.

In August, the government began a review of the contractors' contracts and works involved. A number of members of Congress and officials were involved in the scandal and were accused of receiving 10% to 30% kickbacks.

In September, Philippine flood protection engineering contractor Sarah Diskaia testified in the Senate admitting that she owned 28 luxury cars, suspected of profiting from flood protection projects, once again sparking public discontent.

Congressional leadership "earthquake"

The corruption scandal of flood control projects caused political turmoil in the Philippines, and the government was forced to take a series of actions

For example, public works ministers and transport ministers resigned, the president appointed former Supreme Court judges to lead an independent committee to conduct an investigation, and the funding for flood prevention projects in 2026 was suspended.

On September 8th, Francis Escudero, President of the Philippine Senate, was dismissed on suspicion of corruption in flood control projects.

On the 17th, President Marcos' cousin, House Speaker Martin Romualds, also resigned due to involvement in the scandal to cooperate with the investigation.

These moves have somewhat alleviated public anger, but there is still question whether this is the beginning of substantive accountability or a political performance?

After all, in the history of the Philippines, public fund corruption investigations have often been difficult, and officials involved in the case are rarely sentenced even when convicted.

History of Appeal

The massive protests in the Philippines on the 21st seem to have a special symbolic significance.

On this day in 1972, Marcos¡¯ father, former President Marcos, declared a national warrant, and his son faces the most severe anti-corruption test since he took office.

For a long time, the public works in the Philippines have been a corrupt hotbed.Great funds, weak regulations, combined with local politicians and contractors, have turned engineering projects into a tool of division.

The press officer of the Philippine Presidential Palace said that the president was not worried that the protests would "snowball" and eventually lead to his stepping down, because he encouraged people to take to the streets to express their demands.

There are Filipino scholars who say that for Marcos, the ¡°trillion pesos march¡± is undoubtedly a major political crisis that could have profound implications for Philippine politics and society.

If the investigation flows in the form, public disappointment may escalate to a wider scale of distrust, and even shock the political situation.Whether it can be used as an opportunity to turn the public¡¯s anger into a driving force for reform will be a real test for Philippine politics.

(Editor's email: ylq@jfdaily.com)

Dozens of thousands in the streets of the Philippines to protest corruption, congressional leadership "earthquake", Cousin Marcos has resigned

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Source: Liberation Daily °²