More than half a million people dressed in white flooded central Manila on Sunday to protest the disappearance of billions of dollars in flood mitigation funds. Organised by the powerful Iglesia ni Cristo (INC) megachurch, the rally shut down schools, roads and offices across the capital, with many protesters camping overnight in Rizal Park.
The protest comes amid fury over a corruption scandal in which government investigators have discovered over 400 'ghost' flood protection projects that were reported completed but never existed. The economic planning minister has suggested up to 70% of public funds for flood control may have been lost to corruption.
The lack of flood defences has had deadly consequences: more than 20 typhoons have hit the Philippines this year, with recent storms killing nearly 300 people and displacing millions. 'There is so much corruption,' said Edward, a 20-year-old who travelled from Batangas. 'Our money is being taken but the projects are never completed.'
The INC, which claims nearly three million members who vote as a bloc, has endorsed the winning presidential candidate in the last five elections, including Ferdinand Marcos Jr in 2022. The rally signals a potential shift in the church's allegiance amid a political feud between Marcos and Vice-President Sara Duterte.
President Marcos has tried to calm public anger, promising that officials involved would be arrested and charged by the end of the year. 'They’ll be jailed – there’s no merry Christmas for them,' he said. But with hundreds of thousands on the streets, the pressure on his administration is mounting.
