ADVERTISEMENT
Manila Bulletin devider Business devider Trade & Industry devider Business group appeals for calm amid outrage over flood control scandal

Business group appeals for calm amid outrage over flood control scandal

Published Sep 12, 2025 06:18 pm
Students and members of the UP community walked out of their classes and staged a Black Friday protest against corruption in government projects at the University of the Philippines Diliman in Quezon City on Friday, Sept. 12. The protesters urged the government to hold officials accountable for anomalies in flood control projects and demanded a higher education budget amid massive cuts and unfinished infrastructure. (Photo by Santi San Juan I MB)
Students and members of the UP community walked out of their classes and staged a Black Friday protest against corruption in government projects at the University of the Philippines Diliman in Quezon City on Friday, Sept. 12. The protesters urged the government to hold officials accountable for anomalies in flood control projects and demanded a higher education budget amid massive cuts and unfinished infrastructure. (Photo by Santi San Juan I MB)
The influential Makati Business Club (MBC) appealed for calm amid growing public outrage against corruption linked to anomalous flood control projects, noting that the newly created independent commission should be given a chance to deliver results.
In a statement on Friday, Sept. 12, the MBC said Filipinos “must consciously avoid a repeat of the civil unrest and rioting that has happened in Indonesia and Nepal.”
Both Indonesia and Nepal are facing widespread anti-corruption protests, some of which have turned destructive and deadly.
Videos of these protests have been trending on social media, with some netizens asking if the Philippines could be next in light of the flood control scandal.
The MBC, comprising the country's leading business executives, stated that it shares the outrage and indignation of various sectors regarding the systemic corruption and plunder of public funds.
However, the business group is appealing for calm “to prevent unscrupulous entities from taking advantage of the situation.”
“Let us all give a chance to the Independent Commission to produce results,” it said.
President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. issued Executive Order (EO) No. 94 to establish the three-member Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI).
The ICI is a fact-finding body tasked to investigate “alleged corruption, irregularities, and misuse of funds in government flood control and related projects within the last 10 years, amid mounting concerns that have eroded public trust.”
The MBC stated that it welcomes the creation of the ICI, emphasizing that it should be granted sufficient authority to investigate and pursue cases, ensuring that those involved are fully accountable.
Based on the President’s order, the ICI will conduct hearings, take testimony, and receive, gather, review, and evaluate evidence, reports, and information on matters within its powers to investigate.
The commission is authorized to issue subpoenas for the attendance of witnesses and production of documents necessary to carry out its mandate, as well as the recommendation of a person’s admission as a state witness.
Based on its findings, the ICI will recommend the filing of appropriate criminal, civil, and administrative cases or actions against those responsible before the Office of the President (OP), the Civil Service Commission (CSC), the Office of the Ombudsman, and the Department of Justice (DOJ).
The fact-finding body will have the power to obtain documents from the Senate and the House of Representatives pertaining to their respective investigations.
The MBC, for its part, urged both chambers of Congress to drop their investigations altogether and instead turn over their findings to the ICI.
The group said the Senate and the House of Representatives must “address perceptions of conflict of interests and prevent intramurals that will further erode the image of both institutions.”
“The Makati Business Club hereby undertakes to support the ICI in any way we can, to help it address the enormous challenge in front of all of us,” the MBC said.
“Let us use this opportunity to significantly change the future of our country for the better,” it emphasized.
The ICI will be composed of a chairperson and two members who are of “proven competence, integrity, probity, and independence.”
To date, Malacañang has yet to announce the names of the three individuals who will lead the powerful investigative body.

Related Tags

Makati Business Club (MBC) flood control project
ADVERTISEMENT
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1561_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1562_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1563_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}

{{ articles_filter_1564_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.mb-article-details { position: relative; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview, .mb-article-details .article-body-summary{ font-size: 17px; line-height: 30px; font-family: "Libre Caslon Text", serif; color: #000; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview iframe , .mb-article-details .article-body-summary iframe{ width: 100%; margin: auto; } .read-more-background { background: linear-gradient(180deg, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0) 13.75%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0.8) 30.79%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000) 72.5%); position: absolute; height: 200px; width: 100%; bottom: 0; display: flex; justify-content: center; align-items: center; padding: 0; } .read-more-background a{ color: #000; } .read-more-btn { padding: 17px 45px; font-family: Inter; font-weight: 700; font-size: 18px; line-height: 16px; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle; border: 1px solid black; background-color: white; } .hidden { display: none; }
function initializeAllSwipers() { // Get all hidden inputs with cms_article_id document.querySelectorAll('[id^="cms_article_id_"]').forEach(function (input) { const cmsArticleId = input.value; const articleSelector = '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .body_images'; const swiperElement = document.querySelector(articleSelector); if (swiperElement && !swiperElement.classList.contains('swiper-initialized')) { new Swiper(articleSelector, { loop: true, pagination: false, navigation: { nextEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-next', prevEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-prev', }, }); } }); } setTimeout(initializeAllSwipers, 3000); const intersectionObserver = new IntersectionObserver( (entries) => { entries.forEach((entry) => { if (entry.isIntersecting) { const newUrl = entry.target.getAttribute("data-url"); if (newUrl) { history.pushState(null, null, newUrl); let article = entry.target; // Extract metadata const author = article.querySelector('.author-section').textContent.replace('By', '').trim(); const section = article.querySelector('.section-info ').textContent.replace(' ', ' '); const title = article.querySelector('.article-title h1').textContent; // Parse URL for Chartbeat path format const parsedUrl = new URL(newUrl, window.location.origin); const cleanUrl = parsedUrl.host + parsedUrl.pathname; // Update Chartbeat configuration if (typeof window._sf_async_config !== 'undefined') { window._sf_async_config.path = cleanUrl; window._sf_async_config.sections = section; window._sf_async_config.authors = author; } // Track virtual page view with Chartbeat if (typeof pSUPERFLY !== 'undefined' && typeof pSUPERFLY.virtualPage === 'function') { try { pSUPERFLY.virtualPage({ path: cleanUrl, title: title, sections: section, authors: author }); } catch (error) { console.error('ping error', error); } } // Optional: Update document title if (title && title !== document.title) { document.title = title; } } } }); }, { threshold: 0.1 } ); function showArticleBody(button) { const article = button.closest("article"); const summary = article.querySelector(".article-body-summary"); const body = article.querySelector(".article-body-preview"); const readMoreSection = article.querySelector(".read-more-background"); // Hide summary and read-more section summary.style.display = "none"; readMoreSection.style.display = "none"; // Show the full article body body.classList.remove("hidden"); } document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", () => { let loadCount = 0; // Track how many times articles are loaded const offset = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10]; // Offset values const currentUrl = window.location.pathname.substring(1); let isLoading = false; // Prevent multiple calls if (!currentUrl) { console.log("Current URL is invalid."); return; } const sentinel = document.getElementById("load-more-sentinel"); if (!sentinel) { console.log("Sentinel element not found."); return; } function isSentinelVisible() { const rect = sentinel.getBoundingClientRect(); return ( rect.top < window.innerHeight && rect.bottom >= 0 ); } function onScroll() { if (isLoading) return; if (isSentinelVisible()) { if (loadCount >= offset.length) { console.log("Maximum load attempts reached."); window.removeEventListener("scroll", onScroll); return; } isLoading = true; const currentOffset = offset[loadCount]; window.loadMoreItems().then(() => { let article = document.querySelector('#widget_1690 > div:nth-last-of-type(2) article'); intersectionObserver.observe(article) loadCount++; }).catch(error => { console.error("Error loading more items:", error); }).finally(() => { isLoading = false; }); } } window.addEventListener("scroll", onScroll); });
Join Our Newsletters

Sign up by email to receive news.

© 2025 Manila Bulletin The Nation's Leading Newspaper. All Rights Reserved.