Fingers crossed

Whew!

This is the point where we let out a big sigh of relief now that 2025 has come to pass. That was quite a year for our country and for all of us, in ways big and small.

To say it was a toxic roller-coaster ride is an understatement. It was the kind that malfunctions in the middle of the ride and leaves everyone hanging upside down. A colleague called it a yearlong Mercury in retrograde.

For sure, Murphy’s Law was on overdrive.

Observers were right to point it out. Where we were in January 2025 was nowhere near where we stood by the end of last year. Nobody would have predicted how 2025 would unravel, all because of floodgate.

Before this whole thing erupted, we all knew that corruption was so deeply entrenched in our system, but it was only through this scandal that we would find out just how impossibly corrupt our nation of 115 million really is.

But here we are, on the first day of the new year, filled with hope and optimism. Or for the pragmatic and realistic among us – cautious optimism is perhaps the more accurate term.

The only choice is to keep hoping for better days and better times for our country because it is the only home we have.

For sure, 2026 will be a critical year – for the Philippines, and for you, me and everyone we know.

Make-or-break

For President Marcos, it’s going to be a make-or-break year, his last and increasingly slim chance to redeem his administration after the grand thievery in flood control projects.

As it is now, BBM’s ratings are down, his political capital is depleted and his credibility has become questionable after he himself, his son, his cousin and just about everyone around him have been tagged in the budget insertions-turned-flood control infrastructure corruption scandal.

His promise to have the big fish in jail by Christmas 2025 turned out to be empty – as empty as his vow to bring down the price of rice to P20 per kilo and as hilarious as his campaign promise of unity.

For his administration to survive, BBM must take floodgate seriously; he must have the political will to go after the big fish – for real this time; he must also institutionalize anti-corruption reforms while at the same time keep the economy moving so Filipinos can have jobs to cope with the skyrocketing cost of living.

As it is now, BBM, it appears, loves the easy side of being president – the glitz and the glamor, the ribbon-cuttings, the inaugurations, the state visits and courtesy calls with popular names like American Idol star Jessica Sanchez.

But when it comes to doing the hard work and making bold decisions, we do not see a president who is rising to the occasion.

BBM cannot keep things this way. More importantly, our economy – already flagged by global institutions for its slowing growth as well as domestic and global risks – can no longer afford business as usual.

Manufacturing, exports, tourism and infrastructure spending are all down. Our neighbors are overtaking us by miles and miles.

And so in 2026, BBM’s advisers must start giving their boss the real score. He must shape up or he will just be a lame-duck president from now to 2028.

The stakes are certainly high in the upcoming presidential elections.

Fixing the budget

BBM can start doing real work with the P6.793-trillion budget for 2026.

He must heed the calls to veto appropriations for the Medical Assistance to Indigent and Financially Incapacitated Patients (MAIFIP) and Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situation (AICS).

Senate President Pro Tempore Ping Lacson has already expressed reservations about the said provisions, saying they can be used for political patronage.

Lacson also manifested his reservation over other social welfare programs, or “ayuda,” that are “discretionary and duplicative of institutionalized and rules-based programs and other similar budget items that lack agency requests.”

“The national budget must not be a political tool or spoils for those in power. We deserve a budget that truly serves the people, free from political exploitation,” he said in a statement. “While we have made headway, the path forward remains extensive.”

Lacson cited the lack of solid legal foundation for fund allocations of the MAIFIP, AICS and similar programs.

He also cited the “absence of institutional safeguards from the interference, influence or representation, whether directly or indirectly, of incumbent public officials, electoral candidates, politicians or any of their representatives over any aspect of the programs’ implementation – a clear manifestation of how our budget is not insulated from political patronage.”

We’ve seen what happens when a budget is mangled and manipulated for political patronage and for corruption.

BBM has a chance to change this. But first, he must have the courage to do so.

Otherwise, we will see another year of thievery, corruption and dirty politics. Filipinos will remain on the losing end.

But as I always say, hope is eternal.

As 2026 unfolds, let’s keep the hope alive but continue to pair it with vigilance. This is where my hope comes from and I’m keeping my fingers crossed – that we will demand better governance, honest leadership and a future where relief comes not from surviving scandals, but from preventing them altogether.

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Email: [email protected]. Follow her on X 
@eyesgonzales. Column archives at EyesWideOpen on FB.