A System That Protects the Corrupt
The cancer of corruption in government continues to thrive—not because the people are unaware, but because the system itself shields the powerful while punishing those who dare speak out.
At the heart of this rot are mayors, governors, and congressmen who demand SOPs—the so-called “standard operating procedures” that are nothing more than legalized extortion. They dictate the rules of the game, forcing contractors into a corner: play along or lose every chance at winning a project. In this corrupt marketplace, honesty is not rewarded—it is punished.
But contractors, too, bear responsibility. By playing along, they enable the very system that keeps them hostage. Yet one cannot ignore the dilemma they face. When the rules of the game are rigged by politicians, refusing to “play ball” often means economic suicide.
The greater blame, however, lies with the weakness of our law enforcement and accountability institutions. There is no credible whistleblower protection mechanism. No safe avenue for contractors to run to when pressured to pay SOPs or face manipulated bids. Instead, our so-called watchdogs—the NBI, CIDG, Ombudsman, and DOJ—move at a glacial pace, if they move at all.
High-profile Ombudsman cases have been gathering dust for years, from massive corruption to abuses in quarry permitting. Local PNP officers, meanwhile, have shown themselves powerless, if not complicit, in investigating corruption. Too often, provincial directors and chiefs of police are beholden to the very politicians who lobbied for their appointments.
This is the vicious cycle: a system that protects the corrupt while leaving whistleblowers and citizens defenseless. The corrupt are feared, not investigated. Protected, not prosecuted.
Unless this system changes—unless there are swift entrapments, fearless prosecutions, and genuine whistleblower safeguards—no amount of speeches or slogans will end the culture of impunity. The corrupt will continue to sit on their thrones, while citizens are left to wonder if justice will ever come.
