Zero tolerance for public funds abuse

Let’s face it. There is no buckling down on the issue of flood control and looks like we Filipinos are determined to get to the bottom of all this. At most, there are good people and model leaders out there standing up for the truth and, not to mention, what is right. Maybe we can all agree on the fact that we can no longer stomach the immense corruption that is literally destroying our nation.

Most of us continue to ask, “How do these people sleep at night knowing they have nefariously taken so much from the people?” Each and every time I hear about stories unraveling right in front of our faces, one would have to be completely apathetic to the lives of our people to simply not care about their circumstances. How one human being can do that to another is completely villainous and shameful and, ultimately, a very serious act of violence against humanity.

As Congressman Toby Tiangco said a couple of days ago, there are projects that cost over P350 billion which lack basic project details. That’s 6,021 projects with only 15 contractors cornering 20 percent of the entire P545-billion budget. Still wondering why people are so “obsessed” about this topic? It is downright alarming and a real betrayal of public trust and I agree with the good congressman that such actions have severely endangered the lives of many Filipinos by abusing their rights to proper safety and health, not to mention their right to a dignified way of life.

Imagine how many times we have heard people call the Filipino resilient, so much so that it is almost expected that, as floodwaters continue to rise to dangerous levels, we expect our people to automatically endure the disasters. This time perhaps we can all say that enough is enough and that the Filipino resilience is not the answer to this crisis. We need to commit to exposing all the elephants in the room because we the people deserve better.

Critical infrastructure underpins the basic services and functions which are essential for everyday living and when these are crossed, especially by selfish greed and ambition, such essential services, when disrupted, would have a debilitating impact on society’s security, economy and public safety. Critical infrastructure are all interconnected, as disruptions in a certain area can affect other sectors of the country. It must be impressed upon people that protecting such critical infrastructure has a tremendous impact on our national security and while resilience also plays a major part, the reliance upon the people’s resilience is not the only factor that is necessary but also, it is the critical infrastructure itself that should help communities withstand and recover from disruptions.

Protecting critical infrastructure is a public service that is shared by both government and the private sector. And such a responsibility is so vital to our future that even the President can designate other public services as critical infrastructure through an executive order. Having said this, accountability for critical infrastructure is equally vital, especially when corruption is involved, considering the atrocities committed by individuals who have taken part in projects that don’t even exist. It is therefore correct for the good Congressman Tiangco to urge all agencies, contractors and local authorities to cooperate fully to ensure accountability, especially when people have been deprived of both dignity and justice.

Real reform indeed is in order. It is moral and ethical for all public servants who promise to put the people first. It should matter to everyone when senators like Rodante Marcoleta label the country as being under water. Isn’t it obvious? Yet there are individuals out there who don’t seem to care, so much so that the DPWH secretary has to admit to ghost projects when asked during a Senate probe. Even the good Senator Lacson has done his homework by exposing the province of Bulacan as being the most notorious when it comes to anomalies in flood control projects. I agree with Senator Marcoleta – we owe our people the truth, especially when transparency is nonexistent and the people’s resiliency is abused.

Corruption truly is a cancer, a disease that takes advantage of its entrusted authority, abuses the vulnerable and thinks only of private benefit. Imagine the audacity of some people where about 30 ghost projects specific for flood control were discovered in just one province alone? Only the good Lord knows what else our responsible leaders will unearth next but, regardless of who does, zero tolerance must prevail for such crimes against the people of our Republic.