The Catholic Educational Association of the Philippines (CEAP) has condemned the massive corruption in infrastructure projects, urging citizens to be vigilant and monitor public works projects.
In a statement, the Philippines’s largest network of Catholic schools said the recent revelations showed how corruption had become embedded in the government and the private sector.
“Corruption in our country is so deeply rooted that we have long numbed ourselves to it,” it said. “To all Filipino citizens, we urge vigilance and unity: engage with public officials, monitor local projects, join community consultations, report irregularities, and refuse complicity in bribery.”
On Sept. 8, the Discayas, the wealthy couple with lucrative contracts to substandard government flood control projects, named several lawmakers and public works officials allegedly involved in corruption.
CEAP said it supportted all calls to “turn outrage into a sustained proclamation of hope, with firm commitment to change and moral renewal.”
The association called on Congress to pass laws that encourage active citizen participation in monitoring infrastructure projects, criminalize negligence in public works, regulate campaign financing, and strengthen whistleblower protection.
CEAP challenged the youth to “rise as a generation of integrity” and use its skills to demand accountability and justice.
It also encouraged the educators to strengthen their schools to be “bastions of values and integrity.”
CEAP said it was time to transform patronage and self-entitlement to genuine political empowerment and service of the common good.
“This is a moment for national reflection and decisive action, for hope for renewal, to transform our political culture,” the group said.
In August, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. disclosed the 15 top contractors of flood control projects in the country, pointing out that flooding in some areas remained unresolved, despite the allocation of billions of funds.
