Former political prisoners and human rights advocates staged a forceful protest in front of the Office of the Ombudsman on Wednesday, November 26, 2025, demanding immediate action against massive government corruption involving the highest officials.
Protest at the People's Doorstep
The Samahan ng mga Ex-Detainee Laban sa Detensyon at Aresto (Selda), an organization of former political prisoners dating back to the Marcos Sr. martial law era, joined forces with human rights alliance Karapatan for the demonstration. Protesters gathered at the Ombudsman's office, declaring it the primary institution constitutionally mandated to hold powerful figures accountable.
No one should be spared in corruption investigations, the groups asserted, specifically naming President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and former President Rodrigo Duterte, along with their associates. They emphasized that the continuing failure to prosecute and jail high-ranking officials involved in massive corruption perpetuates cycles of poverty and injustice throughout Philippine society.
Marcos Family's Unchecked Impunity
The protest highlighted what organizers called classic impunity exhibited by the Marcos family. The Marcoses have yet to be held fully accountable for their brazen plunder of public funds during the Marcos Sr. dictatorship, and they haven't even paid the P203 billion estate tax obligation owed to the Filipino people.
Protesters revealed that eight separate cases against the Marcos family have been dismissed by the Sandiganbayan and Supreme Court. These eight cases represented at least P245 billion worth of ill-gotten wealth accumulated by the Marcos family. As of 2021, only P174 billion in assets have been recovered from the estimated US$10 billion allegedly taken during the nearly two decades of the Marcos Sr. presidency.
Demanding Top-Level Accountability
The groups called on the Ombudsman to expedite investigations and prosecutions of high officials accused of large-scale plunder and abuse of public funds. They specifically mentioned cases linking Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to corruption through insertions and unprogrammed allocations, as previously exposed by former Representative Zaldy Co.
Protesters questioned why no investigations have been launched concerning the accountability of Marcos Jr. and the roles of Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin, Budget and Management Secretary Amenah Pangandaman, and Undersecretaries Trygve Olaivar, Adrian Bersamin, and Jojo Cadiz. They emphasized that accountability must reach the highest echelons of power in Malacañang, noting that only fools would believe these officials were unaware of or not responsible for the trillions worth of pocketed funds from allocations meant for flood control projects.
The stolen money represents funds robbed from essential social services, healthcare, and education for the poor. If the Ombudsman fails its constitutional mandate to prosecute the worst offenders, it sends a clear message that the campaign to end impunity spares the biggest and most powerful culprits.
Instead of criminalizing dissent and jailing farmers, labor organizers, activists, and critics, the government should take decisive steps to end the very corruption and oppression these groups protest. True justice requires that all who abused power for personal gain be held accountable, regardless of their position or political connections.
