Patronage Politics: How the Budget Betrays the People

In a recent interview with Cathy Yang on Thought Leaders, PHINMA (Philippine Investment Management) CEO Ramon del Rosario Jr. delivered a rare moment of clarity on the enduring problems of governance and fiscal accountability in the Philippines. His remarks, prompted by the controversy surrounding flood-control funds, exposed not only the inefficiencies of public spending but also the deeper moral lapses that continue to erode public trust.

Del Rosario described as “strange” the President’s public rebuke of corrupt officials—“Mahiya naman kayo!”—given that, as he noted, “It was his budget to start with.” The observation underscored a critical contradiction: how can a leader disown a spending plan that his own office designed, endorsed, and pushed through Congress? This irony lies at the heart of the ongoing flood-control scandal, which has been plagued by allegations of overpriced or nonexistent projects.

More than an indictment of administrative failure, Del Rosario’s statement was a broader warning about how the national budget has devolved into a tool of patronage—a means of rewarding political allies rather than serving citizens. In a country where public works have long been treated as political currency, this critique resonates deeply. 

The national budget, Del Rosario implied, is not merely an accounting instrument but a moral document. It reveals what the government values and whom it chooses to protect. When flood-control funds vanish while communities remain submerged, the figures tell a story of misplaced priorities and moral neglect.

Equally significant was Del Rosario’s emphasis on accountability. Once public funds are approved and released, officials often seek to evade responsibility. Yet leadership, he argued, demands ownership of the entire process—from proposal to implementation. Governance is not about pointing fingers; it is about stewardship and moral consistency.

Del Rosario’s prescriptions were neither radical nor utopian. They were grounded in common sense and sound governance: transparency by default, accountability at the top, and adherence to scientific principles rather than political convenience. 

Effective flood control, he reminded, is not about pouring concrete indiscriminately but about managing water intelligently—through reforestation, disciplined zoning, adequate drainage, and long-term planning. Public funds should follow the science, not the politics.

What distinguishes Del Rosario’s intervention is its tone of civic decency and constructive criticism. He did not indulge in moral grandstanding or partisan rhetoric. Instead, he articulated a vision of governance anchored in responsibility and foresight—qualities that have become increasingly scarce in public discourse. His reminder that “It was his budget to start with” stands out as a quiet act of courage amid the noise and deflection that dominate the national conversation.

If taken seriously, Del Rosario’s message could reshape public expectations about governance. Each line in the national budget would be viewed not as a favor to be distributed, but as a promise to be fulfilled. Infrastructure projects—bridges, dikes, and canals—would once again serve the public interest rather than private gain. 

In essence, budgets can either purchase public trust or subsidize private greed. Del Rosario’s appeal was for the former: that the nation’s finances be guided by moral integrity, transparency, and science-based policymaking.

Such clarity of thought and principle is a reminder that effective governance begins with the courage to accept responsibility. In a time when public confidence is waning, Del Rosario’s words reaffirm that good sense and moral stewardship still have a rightful place in the national dialogue.

The Lame Duck in Malacañang

It is still three long years before Filipinos again troop to the polls in May 2028, yet President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. already bears the air of a lame duck. In politics, perception is everything—and the prevailing one is that of a leader adrift, besieged by scandals, deserted by allies, and unsure how to steady the ship of state amid gathering storms.

A Presidency Losing Its Pulse

The anti-corruption rallies growing in number across the country have become a barometer of public frustration. Once dismissed as scattered dissent, they now reflect a more dangerous undercurrent: a citizenry rediscovering its voice. Each protest that fills the streets is a reminder that the promise of “unity” has collapsed into paralysis. Even the once-pliant bureaucracy senses the drift—projects stall, appointments freeze, and the Cabinet seems to function on autopilot.

The justice system, meanwhile, moves at its characteristic glacial pace. The investigations into alleged corruption in infrastructure funds, procurement anomalies, and favoritism within agencies lumber along—too slow to satisfy the public’s hunger for accountability, yet too visible to be ignored. This half-light of uncertainty—where wrongdoing is suspected but unpunished—is the worst possible environment for governance.

Perilous Vacuum of Power

In any democracy, a president who can no longer command confidence becomes more than ineffectual; he becomes a risk factor. When the chief executive is perceived as weak, the entire institutional architecture begins to creak. Opportunists smell blood. Ambitious politicians start positioning themselves for the next election cycle. Even within the armed forces, whispers of “restoring order” can find sympathetic ears among adventurists nostalgic for “discipline.”

The Philippines has walked this knife’s edge before. A vacuum at the top tempts those in uniform who believe, wrongly, that national salvation lies in barracks rather than ballots. The longer this administration drifts, the greater the temptation for rash acts that could imperil democratic continuity.

Governance Under Siege

To expect Bongbong Marcos to govern effectively under these conditions is to expect the impossible. His legitimacy has been eroded not only by scandal but by inertia. The break with Vice President Sara Duterte fractured his coalition beyond repair; the Senate and House are now battlefields of shifting loyalties. Even within his own family and inner circle, fractures are whispered about.

No president can lead when his every directive is second-guessed, when his Cabinet fears the next exposé, and when the streets echo with calls for resignation. The “baggages” of political indebtedness, historical denialism, and administrative indecision have finally caught up with him.

The Democratic Cost of Drift

An ineffectual president for the next three years is dangerous not just for the Palace but for the Republic. The business climate suffers when uncertainty reigns. The bureaucracy stagnates. Populist demagogues thrive on public disgust. And reformist energy—so vital in moments of national disillusionment—gets wasted on survival rather than reconstruction.

The tragedy is not merely that Marcos Jr. may limp to the end of his term, but that in doing so, he could drag down faith in democratic governance itself. When citizens conclude that elections only yield mediocrity, they start looking elsewhere for saviors.

Where the Country Stands

There is still time—barely—for the president to act with statesmanship: to accept accountability, to enable institutional reforms, even to step aside if his continued stay becomes untenable. A dignified exit is better than a drawn-out implosion. But the hour is late, and the writing is already on the wall.

The real question now is not whether Bongbong Marcos can recover his authority, but whether Philippine democracy can survive his decline intact. The nation cannot afford three years of drift, indecision, and distraction. It needs moral energy, not merely political endurance.

A lame duck can still quack—but it cannot lead a flight.

Budget Insertions and Moral Erosion: The Hidden Pandemic in Congress

 A Virus Without Symptoms

The pandemic may have ended, but another contagion lingers—one that infects not the lungs but the nation’s moral bloodstream. It spreads quietly in committee rooms and late-night bicameral meetings, transmitted not by coughs but by signatures. Its name is budget insertion—a mutation of corruption that hides beneath the language of “allocations,” “amendments,” and “local development funds.”

Each year, as the national budget thickens to thousands of pages, the virus multiplies. Billions of pesos appear almost by magic—inserted after hearings are done, after scrutiny fades, after public attention has shifted to Christmas or celebrity gossip. The result is a ledger swollen not by the people’s needs but by political greed.

The Anatomy of an Insertion

On paper, a “budget insertion” sounds technical, even harmless. Legislators, after all, must represent their districts. Who could object to a road here, a health center there, a flood control project somewhere in the lowlands? But the danger lies not in what is visible—but in what is hidden.

An insertion is a post-approval addition—a fund smuggled into the budget after the President’s proposal has been debated. It is not a crime by definition, but it is a crime against transparency. In essence, it transforms the national budget from a policy document into a political buffet.

It is, in truth, the same pork with a different flavor. The Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) was once its name. When public outrage boiled over in 2013, the Supreme Court struck it down. But like all resilient viruses, pork reinvented itself—now coded as “insertions,” “amendments,” or “agency requests.” The nomenclature changes; the appetite remains.

When Morality Is Amended

The real casualty is not merely fiscal discipline but moral order. When billions can be quietly re-channeled with no one accountable, the entire architecture of governance begins to rot.

Budget insertions erode three pillars of a republic:

• Trust. Citizens lose faith not only in their lawmakers but in democracy itself. Each scandal confirms the suspicion that the government is a syndicate in Barong Tagalog.

• Meritocracy. Public works are no longer based on need or efficiency but on political kinship. The flood control project that worsens flooding is not an accident—it is the logical outcome of corruption by design.

• Accountability. Oversight hearings become theatre; inquiries are launched to distract, not to discipline.

When every peso becomes negotiable, principles become expendable.

The Culture of Silence

Why, then, is there so little outrage? Perhaps because the infection is bipartisan. Both administration and opposition dip their hands into the same pot. They merely quarrel over who gets the larger ladle.

Inside the bureaucracy, the disease has become routine. Career officials, once wary, now shrug: “Ganyan talaga.” To protest is to risk one’s post; to comply is to survive. Even the citizenry, worn down by scandal fatigue, has developed moral calluses. Wala namang malinis.

Ten years ago, people marched against pork. Today, they scroll past it. Outrage has become vintage. We have normalized what once enraged us. I hope I'm wrong.

The Illusion of Development

Every insertion has a story—a school building that never opened, a road that leads nowhere, a seawall that collapses in the first storm. Yet all are wrapped in the rhetoric of “progress.”

It is a cruel irony that while the government borrows billions for “nation-building,” much of it builds only private fortunes. A congressman’s name engraved on a waiting shed has become the new cathedral of gratitude.

The tragedy lies not in the waste alone but in the deception. These insertions steal not just money but meaning. They turn public service into patronage, governance into gossip, citizenship into spectatorship.

Rebuilding the Immune System

What can cure a moral epidemic? Not another sermon, but structural reform.

1. Full Disclosure. Every amendment after the bicameral conference must be published line by line, with sponsoring legislators named.

2. Independent Citizen Audits. Civil society and universities should partner with the Commission on Audit (COA) to review local projects funded by insertions.

3. Digital Transparency. A public portal tracking funds from proposal to completion—allowing citizens to see where their taxes truly go.

4. Ban on Midnight Insertions. No new items allowed once the bicameral conference closes. Sunlight, after all, is still the best disinfectant.

But reform will mean little if morality itself remains compromised. Laws can close loopholes; only conscience can close temptation.

Lessons from the Floods

Perhaps nothing symbolizes our predicament more than the yearly floods that drown our cities. Billions are spent on “flood control,” yet the waters keep rising. Why? Because the funds are controlled by politicians, not by engineers.

In 1986, the Filipino people rose against electoral fraud. Today, it may be budget fraud that drowns us. The floodwaters outside our homes are reflections of the corruption inside our institutions.

When Congress treats the national budget as personal property, the nation becomes one big calamity area—declared, redeclared, and never recovered.

The Real Pandemic

A nation can survive calamities, coups, and even dictatorships. What it cannot survive is the slow death of moral immunity. For when wrongdoing becomes routine and silence becomes consent, the republic’s soul begins to decay.

The real pandemic is not viral—it is moral. Its first carrier is greed; its final symptom is apathy. And until Congress cleanses itself of this hidden infection, every budget will be a patient in critical condition.

For in the end, no vaccine can cure a conscience that no longer feels sick.

Snap Elections as Reset, Justice as Reckoning

Introduction

When corruption scandals reach a tipping point, citizens naturally search for a way out. Today, with the flood control controversy eroding public trust in government, the proposal for a snap election has resurfaced. Yet critics quickly retort: “Ano ang silbi ng snap election kung ang mahalal ulit ay pare-parehong kurakot? Dapat kayong mga nasa pwesto ang magbago.”

At first glance, that objection seems sensible. Why hold another election if the outcome is the same cycle of plunder? But this line of reasoning traps us in a classic chicken-and-egg dilemma: we need honest officials to fix a corrupt system, but we need a reformed system to elect honest officials. If we wait for politicians to change on their own, we wait forever. If we wait for voters to become perfectly discerning, we wait in vain.

The Constitutional Question

Here lies the complication: unlike in 1986, when Ferdinand Marcos Sr. called a snap election under the 1973 Constitution, the 1987 Constitution no longer provides for such a mechanism. The president has a fixed six-year term, with no reelection, and there is no explicit provision for dissolving government and calling an early presidential election.

So, how can a snap election be done legally today? Only through extraordinary political and constitutional means:

Amendment or Revision of the Constitution – Congress, sitting as a Constituent Assembly or through a Constitutional Convention, may insert a provision enabling a special election. This is the “textbook” legal path, but it is slow and uncertain.

Congressional Action for Early Elections – Congress has authority to set the date of elections (Article VI, Sec. 8 for special legislative polls). Extending this principle to the presidency would be controversial but could be attempted if backed by broad consensus.

Resignation + Special Election – If a president resigns, the vice president succeeds. The only way to “return the choice to the people” is if both positions are vacated (by resignation, removal, or political settlement) and Congress calls a special election to fill the vacancies.

Extra-Constitutional but Political – As 1986 showed, if the sitting president himself calls for an election outside the Constitution, it can still gain legitimacy if accepted by the opposition and by the people. The danger is that legality is weak, but legitimacy may carry it through.

In other words, today’s Constitution locks the doors against a snap election. But as history has shown, when institutions are paralyzed by corruption, political will and public demand sometimes pry those doors open. The legal hurdles are formidable, but political crises have a way of bending rigid structures. What seems unconstitutional on paper may become unavoidable in practice when legitimacy collapses.

Elections as Reset Button, Not Magic Wand

A snap election is not a cure-all. It will not automatically cleanse politics of greed. But it acts as a reset button—a way for citizens to withdraw their mandate from discredited leaders and reassert accountability. Without such a mechanism, those in power only grow bolder, thinking the public is powerless to respond.

The 1986 snap election offers a lesson. It was marred by fraud, but it triggered a massive people’s movement that forced the world’s spotlight on Philippine democracy. The perception of massive cheating became the spark that ignited EDSA. That imperfect election, far from being useless, became the turning point for regime change. Even flawed elections can open doors when citizens seize the moment.

But while elections can reset political legitimacy, they cannot by themselves dismantle entrenched systems of corruption. That requires justice.

Justice Must Walk Side by Side With Snap Elections

Still, elections alone are not enough. To restore credibility, a snap election today must be accompanied by honest-to-goodness prosecution of those implicated in the current scandal. Politics and justice must move together: one withdraws the people’s mandate, the other ensures criminal liability.

Post-EDSA, the call was not just for new leadership but also for accountability. Marcos cronies faced charges in the Sandiganbayan; the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) was created to recover ill-gotten wealth. While results were uneven, these efforts showed that regime change and prosecution had to go hand in hand.

If elections proceed without prosecutions, the whole exercise risks being dismissed as a political spectacle. Conversely, if prosecutions are pursued without elections, the same tainted leadership still clings to power. It is their combination that sends the strongest message—that corruption has consequences, both at the ballot box and in the courts.

This dual approach also tempers cynicism. People are less likely to dismiss a snap election as “useless” if they see corrupt officials facing genuine legal consequences. Justice gives substance to the reset.

How to Break the Loop

The comment that “politicians should simply change their ways” appeals to conscience. But conscience is unreliable when unchecked by institutions. What history teaches us is clear: politicians rarely change unless forced to—by pressure from citizens, by the threat of losing office, and by the certainty of legal accountability.

Breaking the chicken-and-egg cycle of corruption requires more than just elections and prosecutions. It also demands structural and cultural change:

• Institutional Reforms First (System Overhaul) – Strengthen checks such as COMELEC independence, campaign finance rules, party reforms, and transparency. Even if politicians are tempted, the system makes corruption harder. This way, elections are more meaningful.

• Incremental Cultural Change – Waiting for a “totally honest” electorate is unrealistic. But small steps—public education, anti-dynasty awareness, watchdog groups—can slowly tilt voter behavior.

• Trigger Events (Catalysts) – Crises like the flood control scandals can shake the status quo and create public demand for cleaner leadership. These are opportunities for movements or coalitions to push honest candidates forward.

• Parallel Track – It doesn’t have to be sequential (“system first, then leaders” or “leaders first, then system”). Often both evolve together. You elect a few reformists, they push small changes, which then allow more reformists to rise in the next cycle.

Reform, therefore, is not a single event but a process of pushing in many directions at once. Elections may provide the spark, prosecutions the substance, and reforms the structure that ensures gains are not rolled back.

A Call to Citizens

We must not fall into fatalism—the idea that “lahat naman kurakot” so why bother? Every crisis opens a window. Every scandal is also an opportunity to push the line of accountability further. The task of citizens is to demand both political reset and judicial reckoning. One without the other is incomplete; together they form the path to real reform.

The floodwaters of corruption have risen too high. Like in 1986, when the cheating in the snap election turned outrage into action, today’s scandals can also be the breaking point. Constitution or no constitution, the public must insist on two things: a reset and a reckoning.

Only then can we break free from the endless cycle, where the same problems hatch again and again like an unbroken chicken and egg. The lesson of our history is clear: when the people press the reset button and pair it with real justice, change, however imperfect, becomes not just possible but inevitable.

Floods, Corruption, and Snap Elections 2025: 1986 All Over Again?

Introduction

In the Philippines today, the political climate is beginning to echo the upheavals of 1986. Back then, Ferdinand Marcos called a snap election for February 7, 1986, hoping to reassert his mandate. Instead, the widespread perception of massive cheating unleashed a political storm. 

It created an atmosphere of anomic instability—dark clouds of anger, lightning strikes of defection, and gale-force protests—that culminated in the historic People Power uprising later that month. Forty years later, another tempest has emerged with similar volatility: flood control corruption.

If the fraudulent snap election symbolized the arrogance and decay of a dying dictatorship, the billion-peso scandals in flood control projects have come to represent the entrenched rot of governance in our time. The floods are not just natural disasters; they are man-made calamities—storms born of siphoned budgets, substandard infrastructure, and a political class fattened on pork-barrel largesse.

The Parallels: 1986 and 2025

1. Crisis of Legitimacy

1986: Marcos still commanded military loyalty and controlled the electoral machinery, but the brazen fraud of the February 7 snap elections destroyed his moral authority. The cheating became the eye of a storm, destabilizing his rule until the People Power revolution swept him away.

2025: While the ruling coalition still claims strength, the spectacle of ghost dikes, overpriced pumping stations, and favored contractors has eroded confidence. Each downpour exposes the cracks, and every flood swells into a storm of discontent.

2. Middle Class Anger

1986: The urban middle class was jolted awake by the COMELEC walkout and televised fraud. Their outrage gathered like storm clouds and burst into massive street protests.

2025:  Today, it is the middle class that bears the brunt of every flood—cars destroyed, homes submerged, jobs interrupted. Their anger is no longer distant or abstract; it has become a storm surge, rising fast and eroding what little trust remains in government.

3. Fractured Elites

1986: Key figures from business, the Church, and even Marcos’s allies began distancing themselves after the election fraud, sensing the typhoon about to hit.

2025: Cracks are forming in today’s ruling alliances. When the very families who bankroll flood control projects are also the families funding campaigns, political storms brew within the palace gates.

The Differences: 1986 vs 2025

1. The Nature of the Trigger

1986: A single dramatic event—the perception of massive cheating in the February 7 snap elections—ignited a storm of outrage almost overnight.

2025: Corruption in flood control is a slow-burning storm—each rainfall adds water, each ghost project piles wind to the gale. The anger builds cumulatively, not explosively.

2. The Role of Social Media

1986: Newspapers, Radio Veritas, and television acted as storm sirens, rallying people into the streets.

2025: Social media is a swirling whirlwind—spreading outrage instantly, but also dispersing energy, mixing truth with disinformation, and complicating sustained mobilization.

3. The International Context

1986: The Cold War framed Marcos’s regime, and U.S. pressure acted like a typhoon warning, pushing Marcos to the brink.

2025: The geopolitical climate is multipolar, a storm with many winds. The U.S. still wields influence, but China, ASEAN, and global markets now buffet Philippine politics, making external pressure less decisive.

4. Opposition Leadership

1986: Cory Aquino became the calm at the storm’s center—moral, unifying, and steady amid chaos. She gave Filipinos a clear direction for democratic renewal.

2025: The opposition is fragmented, storm-tossed without a unifying figure. Some speculate that Vice President Sara Duterte could assume such a role if her father were to pass away. But unlike Cory, who embodied renewal, Sara is tied to dynastic politics and carries a polarizing legacy. If she does not calm the storm, she may deepen it.

5. The Military Factor

1986: Military defections—Enrile and Ramos breaking away—were lightning bolts that split Marcos’s fortress.

2025: Today’s armed forces are more professionalized, less openly political, but storms of factionalism still swirl beneath the surface. Whether lightning strikes again is uncertain.

6. A Lesser Role for the Church: No Cardinal Sin

1986: Cardinal Jaime Sin’s call over Radio Veritas was the thunderclap that summoned millions to EDSA, lending the storm moral power.

2025: The Church is quieter now, its voice a drizzle compared to the past. We definitely have no Cardinal Sin. Civil society groups, NGOs, and digital networks have become the new storm-bringers.

The Probability of a “Snap Election”

The prospect of a snap election—or its modern variant, an early destabilizing vote—is not far-fetched. History shows Filipinos have little patience for leaders who appear both corrupt and incompetent in times of crisis. The next presidential election, that of May 8, 2028, is two years and seven months away: many of them might not be willing to wait that long. 

But the probability depends on two brewing storm fronts:

Escalation of the Flood Crisis. If another catastrophic flood paralyzes Metro Manila and Central Luzon, exposing shoddy DPWH projects, public outrage could spiral into a typhoon of accountability.

Elite Defection. If key political blocs—business magnates, regional kingpins, even factions within the ruling party—withdraw support, the ruling coalition could collapse like a levee in a storm, just as Marcos’s allies did in 1986.

Projections

Opposition Opportunity. A credible opposition figure could channel the flood narrative as Cory Aquino once harnessed the electoral fraud storm. The challenge: fragmentation and lack of a unifying anchor.

Youth Mobilization. In 1986, students filled the streets; in 2025, youth anger swirls faster through social media, like a tropical storm forming in real time. Viral flood videos may unleash a generational backlash.

Church and Civil Society. Then, the Catholic Church’s pastoral letters shook consciences. Today, civil society groups—engineers, environmentalists, civic clubs—may carry the lightning rod of moral outrage.

What Lies Ahead

Short-Term: Expect protest actions to gather like thunderstorms, framed not in ideology but in urgent demands: “Stop the Flood, Stop the Theft.”

Medium-Term: If corruption exposés multiply, whistleblowers may strike like lightning from DPWH and LGU offices, forcing the regime into a desperate electoral gambit—a premature plebiscite, referendum, or snap election.

Long-Term: Whether or not a snap election is called, the erosion of legitimacy could become a typhoon-force rupture. It may bring a peaceful transition—or a more turbulent reconfiguration involving military adventurism.

Conclusion: The Coming Deluge

In 1986, it was the perception of massive cheating in the February 7 snap election that unleashed the storm that toppled Marcos. In 2025, it may be the floodwaters lapping at doorsteps that spark the next reckoning. 

History does not repeat itself exactly, but rhymes are unmistakeable. And the rhyme of our political history suggests that when Filipinos are battered by both flood and fraud, they will reach for the first lifeboat—be it a snap election, a protest wave, or a revolution by another name.

The danger is that while storms may sweep away rulers, the channels for genuine reform are weaker now than in 1986. With a fragmented opposition, a less assertive Church, and dynasties steering the ship, the lifeboat may drift in circles.

The challenge for Filipinos, then, is not only to weather the storm but also to rebuild institutions strong enough to withstand both the natural disasters and the corruption.

When Crime Rode the JD Bus: The Legend of Danny Purple

One humid afternoon in the Seventies in UP Diliman, the legendary eccentric Danny Purple flagged down a JD bus—one of those red, rattling warhorses that shuttled students from Balara to Quiapo. The bus was already packed, but Danny squeezed himself in.

The JD “kundoktora”—prim, pink-uniformed, hair sprayed to military stiffness—clicked her ticket puncher and asked matter-of-factly:

“Saan ho kayo, sir?”

Instead of answering, Danny Purple froze, then exploded in righteous fury. His eyes bulged, his voice thundered, and the whole bus fell silent.

“Do you know who I am?”

The poor kundoktora blinked, terrified.

“Eh… hindi, sir…”

Danny threw his arms wide like he was unveiling the apocalypse:

“I… AM… CRIME!!!”

The bus gasped. The kundoktora, regaining her barrio-lass backbone, shot back:

“Eh ano ngayon?!”

And with operatic drama, Danny Purple delivered the line that would echo in UP canteens and tambayans for decades:

“CRIME… DOES NOT PAY!”

 The bus erupted—in laughter, not fear. Even the driver almost drove into a kariton. And thus, with one punchline, Danny Purple cemented his immortality in UP Diliman lore.

From Noise to Clarity: A Scattered Movement Must Unite to Win Real Accountability.

Introduction: Too Many Battles, No Single War

The anti-corruption rallies scheduled today arrive with a paradox: they are both overflowing with targets and lacking one. Each participating group carries its own agenda—some against the Marcoses, others against the Dutertes, still others against the system itself. What should be a unified call for accountability risks becoming a cacophony of voices, where clarity is drowned in a sea of competing demands.

One rally leader even warned against those who would “makikisakay”—a veiled reference to the Left. But in doing so, he revealed not leadership, but division. At the very moment when the country needs solidarity the most, divisive lines are being drawn. The instinct should have been the opposite: to call for a united front, to stitch together these disparate energies into a single banner. Instead, the seeds of fragmentation are already being sown.

The Perils of Mixed Messaging

Movements succeed not only through moral fervor but through disciplined clarity. “Ano ba talaga, kuya?” is the lingering question. What is the demand? Is it for the President to resign? For the Vice President not to succeed him? For plundered funds to be returned? For systemic reform of pork-barrel-style allocations and flood-control scams? Each is worthy, but taken together without prioritization, they blur into confusion.

Social media reflects this dissonance. One group wears black shirts declaring something like: “Don’t demand that BBM resign, because ang papalit ay si Sara.” This is the kind of cognitive knot that immobilizes action. Instead of focusing firepower on corruption itself, the campaign is preoccupied with second-guessing succession scenarios.

Meanwhile, the Powerful Move Quietly

As the movement gropes for coherence, political figures named in controversies take defensive positions—some resign, others lie low, still others are abroad—while inquiries churn. In recent weeks, the Commission on Audit (COA) has publicly flagged additional “ghost” flood-control projects and filed new complaints, part of an expanded fraud audit covering DPWH flood-control spending [1]. These reports underscore how incomplete or non-existent works can thrive under opaque budgeting and weak oversight, with potential irregularities spanning officials and private contractors alike.

And while politicians lie low, their partners in plunder remain in the shadows. Contractor families—the Discayas among them—are often cited by observers as emblematic of the racket. Allegations of overpriced flood projects, ghost infrastructures, and padded contracts have swirled for years in Senate and House inquiries. 

The Politician-Contractor Nexus

Contractors questioned on their lavish lifestyles have even invoked the right against self-incrimination [2]. Whether proven in every case or not, the pattern is depressingly familiar: funds are released, costs balloon, projects crumble—or vanish altogether—and both politicians and contractors walk away richer.

Here lies the deeper truth: corruption is not sustained by politicians alone, but by the symbiosis between political patrons and contractor-beneficiaries. Without the contractors who enable and profit from these deals, the machinery of looting would grind to a halt. Tools to stop this already exist—blacklisting rules under the Government Procurement Policy Board (GPPB) allow erring suppliers and contractors to be barred from future projects—but enforcement and follow-through are everything [3][4].

The Need for a Single Banner

History offers a lesson. The rallies that shook the Marcos dictatorship in the 1980s did not succeed because they were scattered in a dozen directions. They succeeded because they coalesced into a single cry: “Tama na, sobra na, palitan na!” Clarity emboldened the many, not just the organized few.

Likewise, during the 2013 Million People March, the demand was equally pointed: abolish the pork barrel system. That clarity galvanized broad participation and helped pave the way for the Supreme Court’s landmark ruling later that year, declaring the congressional pork barrel (PDAF) unconstitutional [5][6][7].

Today’s anti-corruption movement must relearn this lesson. Its moral energy is undeniable, but its narrative is weak. If the demand is resignation, declare it without hesitation. If the demand is restitution, outline the mechanisms to recover stolen wealth. 

If the demand is systemic reform, identify the precise targets: pork-like discretionary insertions, collusion with favored contractors, bid-rigging, ghost projects, and substandard works. 

And with every target, combine the solution: full e-procurement, project geotagging, independent technical audits, mandatory publication of as-built plans, real-time COA dashboards, and strict blacklisting of erring contractors. 

Only when outrage is paired with clarity can it cut deep. Ambiguity serves not the people but the corrupt—whether they occupy Manila’s halls of power or profit quietly as contractors in the provinces.

Toward a Sharper Campaign

If today’s rallies are to avoid becoming tomorrow’s footnotes, three steps are urgent:

1. Unify the Front. All groups—Left, Center, and Right—should be urged toward one non-negotiable demand (e.g., “Recover and return the money,” or “Abolish discretionary insertions and blacklist colluding firms”). Differences can be postponed until after a concrete win.

2. Name the Enemy Precisely. Not in generalities like “corruption,” but in specifics: the scheme (ghost projects, padded contracts), the enabling offices (procurement, implementing agencies), and the mechanisms of capture. When naming examples—politicians or contractors—anchor them in publicly reported inquiries, COA flags, or court actions [1][2].

3. Create and Empower a Recovery Mechanism. Demand a modern, truly independent PCGG-style body (with prosecutorial coordination) to: (a) freeze assets, (b) claw back ill-gotten gains, and (c) blacklist crooked contractors—using existing GPPB rules but with stronger enforcement and public transparency. Historical precedent shows the state can recover assets with the right mandate and political will [8].

Conclusion: A Moment That Demands Clarity

The tragedy of the Filipino nation is not only that it is robbed, but that its outrage is scattered. A people’s cry can move mountains, but only if it is sharp, focused, and sustained. Today’s anti-corruption movement is at a crossroads: it can either dissipate into the fog of competing slogans or it can forge itself into a spear that pierces the heart of brazen impunity.

The question is not whether corruption must be fought—it must. The question is whether the people can summon the discipline to fight it together, under one banner, with one voice, until stolen funds are returned—and until the contractor-politician nexus that enabled the looting is finally broken. 

References

1. COA flags 4 more ghost flood control projects, files new raps. (2025, Sept.). Philippine Daily Inquirer.

2. AP News. (2024). Philippines Senate and House inquiries into flood-control anomalies.

3. Government Procurement Policy Board (GPPB). (2017, Dec. 21). Resolution No. 40-2017: Uniform Guidelines for Blacklisting of Manufacturers, Suppliers, Distributors, Contractors and Consultants.

4. Government Procurement Policy Board (GPPB). (2017). NPM No. 036-2017.

5. Amnesty International Philippines. (2022, July). Million People March (2013): ProtestPH.

6. Reuters. (2013, Aug. 26). Tens of thousands of Filipinos protest “pork barrel” funds.

7. Greco Belgica, et al. v. Ochoa, et al., G.R. No. 208566 (Supreme Court of the Philippines, Nov. 19, 2013).

8. Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG). (2023). Year-End Report 2022: Asset Recovery and Disposition.

How Ferdinand Marcos Won the Senate Presidency

Introduction: The Philippines and the World in 1963

The contest for the Philippine Senate presidency in April 1963 unfolded against a backdrop of political uncertainty at home and turbulence abroad. Domestically, President Diosdado Macapagal was midway through his term, pushing his “New Era” program of land reform and foreign policy realignment toward stronger ties with the United States. 

Inflation, rising unemployment, and a stubborn rice shortage were fueling public dissatisfaction, while corruption scandals like the Stonehill Affair kept the political climate tense. Within Congress, the traditional rivalry between the Liberal and Nacionalista Parties was sharpening as the 1965 elections loomed. 

Abroad, the Cold War was at its height: the Cuban Missile Crisis had shaken the world just months earlier, the Vietnam conflict was escalating, and Southeast Asia was becoming a new arena of superpower competition.

In this climate of waning credibility and domestic volatility, the struggle for the Senate presidency assumed outsize importance, serving not only as a fight for legislative control but also as a dress rehearsal for the presidential succession.

With this broader context in mind, the drama that played out in the Senate on April 5, 1963 — remembered for Roseller Lim’s legendary filibuster and Alejandro Almendras’s decisive defection — can be better understood as more than a procedural skirmish. 

It was a pivotal episode in the nation’s political trajectory, one that foreshadowed the stormy years to come. It was in this climate of uncertainty that the Senate chamber became the nation’s arena, with a single vote set to decide not just leadership but the future course of Philippine politics. It marked the turning point in the career of the man who, within less than a decade, would undo the then-17-year-old democratic experiment of the Philippines. 

Roseller Lim’s 18½-Hour Stand

On April 5, 1963, Nacionalista Senator Roseller T. Lim employed the most extreme parliamentary tactic in the Senate’s history. He initiated an 18½-hour filibuster, determined to prevent a vote for the Senate presidency until Sen.Alejandro Almendras, then abroad, could return and strengthen the Nacionalista majority. 

Lim stood at the rostrum all day and through the night, drinking only water and refusing to yield the floor. His marathon effort, remembered in political lore as “The Great Filibuster,” was a physical and political gamble. Finally, when Almendras arrived, Lim, utterly exhausted, cast his vote for Rodriguez and collapsed, needing to be carried out of the session hall. 

What followed was a twist that stunned the chamber: Almendras broke ranks and sided with Marcos. Lim’s heroic filibuster, intended to save his party’s leader, instead highlighted the futility of resistance.

The Roll Call: Who Voted for Whom

The final tally reflected the razor-thin division: 13 for Marcos, 11 for Rodriguez.

For Ferdinand Marcos (13 votes):

Liberal Party senators (10): Ferdinand E. Marcos, Ambrosio B. Padilla, Estanislao Fernandez, Gerardo “Gerry” Roxas, Juan R. Liwag, Maria Kalaw Katigbak, Gaudencio E. Antonino, Camilo Osias, Wenceslao Lagumbay, Cipriano P. Laurel Jr.

Progressive/Grand Alliance senators (2): Raul S. Manglapus, Manuel P. Manahan.

Nacionalista defector (1): Alejandro D. Almendras.

For Eulogio Rodriguez Sr. (11 votes):

Nacionalista Party senators (11): Eulogio “Amang” Rodriguez Sr., Roseller T. Lim, Gil J. Puyat, Cipriano Primicias Sr., Arturo M. Tolentino, Jose J. Roy, Genaro F. Magsaysay, Oscar Ledesma, Mariano Jesús Cuenco, Fernando Lopez, Eulogio Balao.

Although renowned for his independence as leader of the Nationalist Citizens’ Party, Tañada’s vote in this contest aligned with Rodriguez, consistent with the official 13–11 split. His reputation as a principled “wild card” explains why neither side counted heavily on him, but mathematically, his support had to be on the Nacionalista side since Almendras was the lone defection.

The Final Tally: Almendras Decides, Tañada Stands Apart

Based on the available accounts of the 1963 Senate presidency election, Lorenzo M. Tañada did not vote for Ferdinand Marcos. As mentioned, the decisive swing came from Alejandro Almendras, who broke ranks with the Nacionalistas and joined the twelve Liberals to give Marcos a slim 13–11 victory. 

Had Tañada also cast his lot with Marcos, the margin would have been 14–10, but both the Senate record and reports of the time are unanimous that the outcome was 13–11. Thus, the final tally stood at 13 votes for Marcos (12 Liberals plus Almendras) against 11 votes for Rodriguez (the solid Nacionalista bloc), with Tañada abstaining or casting an independent vote. 

As the lone senator of the Nationalist Citizens’ Party, Tañada was renowned for his independent nationalist stance and frequently abstained or cast symbolic votes when the contest was simply between the two major blocs. In 1963, both camps understood that he would not bind himself to either side, and thus his vote, while principled, was not pivotal to the result.

Why this Senate Election Was Significant

The Senate Presidency had immense institutional clout. The position was far more than a ceremonial title. As presiding officer of the chamber, Marcos now held the authority to influence committee assignments, control the referral of bills, and manage the flow of legislation on the floor. 

This allowed him to reward allies, marginalize rivals, and cultivate a reputation as an effective power broker. Beyond procedure, the position carried enormous prestige: the Senate President was seen as the second most powerful elected official in the Republic, just a heartbeat away from Malacañang. 

In a country where political stature was closely tied to visibility, Marcos’s assumption of the role elevated him instantly into the national spotlight and confirmed his status as a serious contender for the presidency.

Political Momentum

Marcos’s narrow victory demonstrated not only his tactical shrewdness but also his ability to seize the moment. Having secured the Senate presidency against a seasoned Nacionalista leader, he emerged as the undisputed star of the Liberal Party, seemingly poised to inherit its mantle in 1965 under President Diosdado Macapagal’s earlier assurance. 

The win created a sense of inevitability about his presidential ambitions, burnishing his image as a man destined for higher office. For Marcos’s allies, the triumph was proof of his political genius; for his opponents, it was a warning that he had both the will and the skill to outmaneuver even the most entrenched figures in Philippine politics.

A Lesson in Political Procedure

The 1963 battle also crystallized key features of Philippine politics that have echoed across generations. 

First was the culture of brinkmanship, vividly dramatized by Roseller Lim’s 18½-hour filibuster, a show of endurance that highlighted how procedure could be weaponized in pursuit of partisan goals. 

Second was the reality of fluid loyalties, symbolized by Alejandro Almendras’s sudden defection and later mirrored by Marcos himself when he crossed over to the Nacionalistas to secure the 1965 nomination. Such shifts revealed the transactional nature of alliances, where personal ambition often took precedence over ideology. 

Third was the Senate’s role as a launchpad for presidential power: the visibility and authority of its presidency provided an unmatched platform for those seeking national leadership. In these three ways, the episode not only decided a leadership contest but also illuminated the enduring dynamics of Philippine politics.

A Party Divided: Liberal Party Cracks on the Road to 1965

In 1965, the Liberal Party faced not only the defection of Ferdinand Marcos but also the departure of Vice President Emmanuel Pelaez, who likewise left the party to seek the Nacionalista Party’s presidential nomination. 

With two of its most prominent figures leaving, President Diosdado Macapagal had to rebuild his ticket for the upcoming election. To replace Pelaez, the Liberals turned to Senator Gerardo “Gerry” Roxas, son of former President Manuel Roxas, who was chosen as Macapagal’s running mate for vice president. 

This realignment highlighted the deep divisions within the Liberal Party and revealed the shifting loyalties that shaped the volatile political landscape leading up to the crucial 1965 presidential race.

Epilogue: The Players and Their Legacies

Roseller T. Lim

Known ever after as the “Great Filibusterer,” Lim’s extraordinary 18½-hour stand symbolized both his devotion to the party and his willingness to sacrifice personal comfort for political loyalty. Yet his effort, though legendary, ultimately proved futile. In later years, he would transfer to the Liberal Party and eventually close his career as a justice of the Court of Appeals, remembered more for that single act of physical endurance than for his judicial work. Roseller Lim died on July 5, 1976

Alejandro Almendras

Once regarded as a reliable Nacionalista, Almendras stunned the chamber when he defected to support Marcos. That one decision, delivered at the crucial moment, altered the balance of power and changed the course of national politics. His role epitomized the fluidity of Philippine political alignments, where loyalty could yield to personal calculation and circumstances could elevate a single senator into a kingmaker. Alejandro Almendras died on August 4, 1995

Eulogio "Amang Rodriguez" Sr. 

For more than a decade, Rodriguez had been the formidable steward of the Nacionalista Senate majority, embodying both its traditions and its authority. But in 1963 he was overtaken by fissures within his own ranks. His loss to Marcos marked not only the end of his long tenure as Senate President but also a symbolic passing of the torch from an older generation of party bosses to a new breed of ambitious tacticians. Eulogio "Amang" Rodriguez died on December 9, 1964.

Ferdinand E. Marcos Sr.

Of all the players, it was Marcos who emerged triumphant. His victory in the Senate presidency confirmed his status as the most formidable political strategist of his generation and gave him the stature needed to pursue the presidency. The episode revealed his ability to navigate shifting alliances, exploit opportunities, and convert narrow margins into decisive triumphs. It was the moment when his path to Malacañang became unmistakably clear. Ferdinand Marcos Sr. died on September 28, 1989. 

Conclusion: The Promise and the Betrayal

The Senate drama of April 1963 remains a pivotal inflection point in Philippine political history. It brought into sharp relief the theatrics of parliamentary maneuver, the fragility of party loyalties, and the force of personal ambition in shaping national destiny.

Yet what gave the episode a deeper resonance was the irony that unfolded afterward. President Diosdado Macapagal, who had earlier assured Marcos that he would not seek reelection in 1965, later reversed course and chose to run again. 

This reversal shattered Marcos’s expectations and enraged him. Feeling betrayed, he defected to the Nacionalista Party, secured its nomination, and in the November 1965 elections, decisively defeated Macapagal by 673,572 votes, out of a voting population of 9,962,345. 

Thus, the 1963 Senate presidency battle was not merely a one-vote upset or the story of a legendary filibuster. It was the crucible of Marcos’s ascent—the moment when he perfected the art of political maneuver, only to wield it against the very party and patron who had once promised him the presidency.

References

Agoncillo, T. A. (1990). History of the Filipino people (8th ed.). Garotech Publishing.

Burton, S. (2022). Roseller T. Lim and the Great Filibuster. Vibal Foundation.

Manila Times. (1963, April 6–7). Reports on the Senate presidency battle. Manila, Philippines.

Philippines Free Press. (1963, April issue). Coverage of the Marcos–Rodriguez Senate presidency contest. Manila, Philippines.

Senate of the Philippines. (n.d.). List of senators: Fifth Congress (1962–1965). https://legacy.senate.gov.ph/senators/senlist.asp

Tañada, L. M. (n.d.). Biographical sketch. Nationalist Citizens’ Party archives.

U.S. Department of State, Office of the Historian. (1967). Foreign relations of the United States, 1964–1968, Volume XXVI: Philippines. https://history.state.gov/historicaldocuments/frus1964-68v26

Wikipedia contributors. (2023, August). 1963 in the Philippines. In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1963_in_the_Philippines

Wikipedia contributors. (2023, September). Roseller T. Lim. In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roseller_T._Lim

Wurfel, D. (1988). Filipino politics: Development and Decay. Cornell University Press.

A Path Not Taken

 The 51st Star: What If the Philippines Became a U.S. State in 1946?

In an alternative universe, the Philippines is not granted independence on July 4, 1946. Instead, the flag of the United States gets one more star—representing a beautiful Pacific archipelago. Overnight, every Filipino becomes a U.S. citizen. Soldiers who fought in Bataan are entitled to the GI Bill. Their children no longer dream of visas; they dream of Yale, UCLA, or even community college in Houston. 

And Philippine history further diverges. It doesn’t enter the fragile and unsure dawn of the new republic. Instead, it joins America’s Union, with all the chaotic, dazzling, and perilous consequences that follow.

The Philippines Could Have Been Like Hawaii

The Hawaii Model is the bright, postcard version of Philippine history. Federal money flows steadily into highways, ports, bridges, and power grids across the islands. FEMA becomes a familiar presence, swooping in after typhoons to restore order, turning what used to be national tragedies into survivable events. Veterans’ benefits stimulate suburban-style developments, with neat homes and manicured lawns sprouting outside Manila and Cebu. Middle-class prosperity grows not from remittances but from domestic wages and federal transfers.

Tourism would have surged to levels unimaginable in our actual timeline. With American standards of safety, infrastructure, and marketing, Manila and Cebu could have become Pacific versions of Miami, while Palawan rivaled Hawaii as a vacation magnet. Instead of sending millions abroad to work as bellhops, nurses, and seafarers, Filipinos would have hosted millions of Americans flying in for leisure.

But the Hawaii path is not just about wealth—it’s about identity. Statehood would have bound Filipinos’ sense of self more tightly to the United States, reducing the cultural schizophrenia of being both Asian and Western yet fully neither. English would have solidified as the lingua franca, while fiestas, cuisine, and folk traditions found themselves woven into America’s larger multicultural fabric.

Asian Tiger: Quezon City Could Have Been Silicon Valley East

The Asian Tiger Model would have thrust the Philippines onto the global stage as an innovation hub firmly under American auspices. Statehood meant federal management—FBI investigations, Justice Department indictments, and federal courts unwilling to tolerate the systemic graft that had weighed down the Philippines for so long.

That kind of governance would have unlocked an economic miracle. Quezon City might have become a Silicon Valley East, where American venture capital poured into Filipino startups in aerospace, semiconductors, and defense contracting. Engineers from Diliman and Los Baños would not be fleeing abroad but leading NASA projects, while Filipino coders would have written the software running Wall Street’s trading floors.

And perhaps most transformatively: the Pinoy brain drain could have been a Pinoy  brain loop. Instead of the best Pinoy minds leaving permanently, they would circulate—Manila to San Jose, Cebu to Seattle, Davao to Houston—returning with knowledge, capital, and networks.

In this version, the Pinoy psyche grows prouder, more disciplined, and less cynical.

The Puerto Rico Model

In the Puerto Rico Model, statehood translates not into dynamism but into dependency. Of course, there are food stamps, Medicare, and Medicaid, but these become lifelines rather than catalysts. Typhoons devastate communities, FEMA always arrives, yet rebuilding feels endless. Infrastructure grows old before it is repaired. Washington becomes both the benefactor and the bottleneck.

In the Puerto Rico Model, statehood hasn’t meant progress but reliance. Federal aid like food stamps, Medicare, and Medicaid keep people afloat, but these don’t lead to real growth. After every typhoon, FEMA steps in, yet rebuilding never seems to finish. Roads, bridges, and buildings wear out faster than they get fixed. Washington provides the money, but also controls the pace—helping, yet holding things back at the same time.

The economy under this path never quite takes off. Inter-island shipping remains lethargic, inflating the cost of goods. Factories struggle, ports remain clogged, and industries migrate elsewhere in Asia. As opportunities stagnate, millions leave for California, Texas, Hawaii, and New York.

Most tragic of all, the culture of cynicism persists. Statehood delivers rights, but not rejuvenation. Politics becomes a cycle of pleading and depleting larger aid packages and bailouts. The Philippines remains visible on the US flag but peripheral in the national imagination.

The Cold War Model

The Cold War Model transforms the Philippines into a garrison state—the Pentagon of the Pacific. Subic and Clark bloat into colossal bases supplying Korea and Vietnam. Draft quotas weigh heavily; thousands of Filipinos serve in wars not as allies but as drafted American citizens.

Jobs are plentiful: shipbuilding, logistics, and base services keep families get by. Yet prosperity feels borrowed, contingent on war. When peace comes, bases close, leaving ghost towns behind.

And there are protests. Just as Berkeley raged, so too would Taft Avenue. Students at UP Diliman burn draft cards. Priests pontificate against militarism. Riot police clash with demonstrators. The Philippines becomes America’s Vietnam staging ground, split between those who depend on the bases and those who hate them.

The Turbulent Model

The darkest fork is the Turbulent Model, where statehood delivers rights on paper but discord in practice. Mindanao erupts in unrest, its Muslim population feeling dominated not just by Luzon but now by Washington. Federal troops patrol Cotabato and Davao, bringing back memories of Bud Dajo and Bud Bagsak massacres of 1906 and 1913. Civil rights clashes play out in Davao, Marawi, and Jolo streets.

Meanwhile, corruption, the bane of the Filipino,  refuses to die. Local and national political dynasties adapt, manipulating federal funds and bending rules. FBI indictments trigger resentment rather than reform. Filipinos begin to see Washington as a meddler, not a savior.

The turbulence is not just political—it’s psychological. Citizens grow up half-American, half-Filipino, but fully alienated. They wave the flag without warmth. In this world, statehood produces bitterness, not renewal.

The Path Not Taken

If the Philippines had taken the 51-star path in 1946, America wouldn’t just look different on a flag. It would be different in its soul. The Cold War’s hottest waters would have been home waters. China’s island-building in the South China Sea? Unthinkable. Filipino senators would be running Washington committees, not begging Washington for favors.

If the Philippines had taken the 51-star path in 1946, America wouldn’t just look different on a flag. America would be different in its soul. The tensions of the West Philippine Sea would have occurred in familiar waters and would have happened in the context of America's immense power. China’s island-building in the South China Sea? Unthinkable. And Filipinos as mendicants? Impossible. Filipino senators would be chairing Washington’s powerful committees, not flying across the Pacific to plead for crumbs.

In that alternative universe, the Philippines didn’t merely add a star to Old Glory. It rewrote the American story.

When the Philippines Slammed the Door on History

On September 16, 1991, the Philippine Senate voted to reject the renewal of the U.S.–Philippines Bases Agreement. The decision was celebrated as a triumph of sovereignty, a casting off of colonial chains at Subic and Clark. Thirty-three years later, however, the reckoning is less triumphant and far more sobering. What was billed as “independence” may in fact have been one of the costliest mistakes in modern Philippine history.

The Economic Price was Immediate 

Tens of thousands lost their jobs when Clark and Subic shut down. Local businesses—from jeepney drivers to factory suppliers—collapsed overnight. The U.S. was prepared to inject billions in rent, aid, and infrastructure upgrades. Instead, the Philippines got empty runways, rusting hangars, and the slow conversion of Subic into an industrial park that only partly made up for the devastation. The promise of progress was exchanged for economic dislocation.

The Security Price Was Even Steeper

By closing the bases, the Philippines also closed the door to one of its strongest deterrents. Within four years, China seized Mischief Reef in the Spratlys, exploiting the power vacuum. Our underfunded armed forces, still flying Vietnam-era helicopters and sailing World War II ships, had nothing with which to push back. The symbolism of nationalism had cost us the substance of security.

Geopolitically, the Philippines Surrendered its Leverage

For nearly a century, the country was the United States’ most strategic outpost in Asia. By rejecting the bases, we forced Washington to pivot to Singapore, Thailand, and Australia. The Philippines—sitting at the very throat of the South China Sea—was suddenly reduced to a bystander in a game it once anchored. 

We traded centrality for irrelevance, only to beg for a return through the Visiting Forces Agreement in 1999 and Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement in 2014. By then, Beijing’s artificial islands were already rising from the sea.

The Sovereignty Argument, in Hindsight, Rings Hollow. 

Other nations host U.S. bases on their soil without being reduced to colonial wards. Japan has allowed tens of thousands of American troops on Okinawa for decades, yet remains the world’s third-largest economy and an unmistakably sovereign power. South Korea, with nearly 30,000 U.S. troops stationed there, has grown from war-torn ruin into a technological and cultural giant. 

Even Germany, the beating heart of the European Union, hosts over 35,000 American personnel, yet dictates EU policy from Berlin, not Washington. These countries demonstrate that sovereignty is not weakened but rather strengthened when backed by credible security guarantees.

By contrast, the Philippines chose to conflate nationalism with isolation, waving the flag as the bases shut down. The result was a hollow sovereignty: we kept the symbols but lost the substance. A nation is not less sovereign because it has allies; it is less sovereign when it cannot defend its own seas, cannot secure its own resources, and cannot guarantee prosperity for its own people.

"Magnificent 12"

Looking back, the Senate’s “Magnificent 12” voted with their hearts, but perhaps not with their heads. Sovereignty is precious, but sovereignty without security and prosperity is a hollow boast. A country may wave its flag, but a flag cannot stop missiles nor feed the jobless.

Today, as Chinese coast guard vessels train their water cannons on our resupply missions to Ayungin Shoal, the irony is brutal: we are once again calling on the United States, pleading for joint patrols, security guarantees, and a return of the very presence we once expelled.

In 1991, we told the Americans to leave. Now, in the shadow of a rising China, we realize too late: it was not the Americans we had evicted, but our own future.