Philstar
'Impyerno!': From students to retirees, thousands rage at ghost projects at Luneta rally
Thousands of Filipinos, including students and retirees, rallied at Rizal Park in Manila on Sunday, September 21, 2025, to protest a multibillion-peso scandal involving bogus flood-control projects.
The protest, coinciding with the 53rd anniversary of martial law, saw at least 13,000 people demanding an end to rampant corruption.
While the initial anger stemmed from the flood control scandal, the calls became multi-sectoral, with protesters urging transparent budget policies and raising environmental concerns.
Youth in Benguet had previously called for a province-wide uprising against corruption, particularly concerning infrastructure projects, noting that billions allocated to flood control and rock netting projects by the DPWH from 2020 to 2024 have not resolved severe floods and landslides.
The Department of Finance estimates that non-existent flood control projects have cost the economy billions, and the Ombudsman reports that 20% of government resources are lost to corruption annually.
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The Makabayan bloc clarified that planned September 21 rallies are protests against corruption in government projects, not calls for President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. or Vice President Sara Duterte to resign.
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Thousands of rights advocates, students, religious organizations, and volunteers protested alleged corruption nationwide on September 21, 2025, coinciding with the 51st anniversary of Ferdinand Marcos Sr.'s martial law declaration.
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Philippine National Police deployed 50,000 officers nationwide to secure anti-corruption protests on Sunday, September 21, 2025.
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Around 7,000 UPLB students, faculty, and staff staged a walkout protest against corruption in infrastructure works and demanding a budget increase for the education sector.
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The Senate Blue Ribbon Committee cited former DPWH-Bulacan first district engineer Henry Alcantara and contractor Pacifico "Curlee" Discaya in contempt for allegedly lying during the investigation of anomalous flood control projects.
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