Corruption has been with us for decades. It is a malignant curse, draining public funds and dulling the outrage of those who have lived with it for generations. It is a national cancer, causing widespread suffering when government projects fall below quality standards or, worse, are non-existent — such as flood control infrastructure.

For so long, people have grumbled about corruption, found some humor in it, and too often accepted it as part of our culture or an unavoidable feature of public life. But at last week’s Kapihan sa Manila Hotel, that sense of resignation was met with a call to arms.

Baguio City Mayor Benjamin Magalong, Volunteers Against Crime and Corruption (VACC) president Arsenio Evangelista, and retired Court of Appeals Justice Alfredo Ampuan were our three guests who did not mince words. Their message was clear: corruption is not random, is not petty, and not inevitable. It is systemic, organized, and corrosive—and unless Filipinos themselves take a firm stand on accountability and transparency, no reform will ever succeed.

Mayor Magalong, known for his advocacy of integrity in public service through the “Mayors for Good Governance” movement, was blunt. Corruption, he said, is nothing less than “a massive and highly systemic organized crime.” He recalled how his push for clean governance in 2019 met resistance and apathy from citizens who had grown so accustomed to graft that it seemed normal.

But in Baguio, he claimed he fought corruption relentlessly. Projects were subjected to stricter oversight, and blockchain technology was deployed to secure public records against tampering and make them fully accessible to the public. His message was unambiguous: honest governance is not an abstract dream. It works when leaders innovate and communities demand accountability.

“By implementing transparent processes, empowering our communities, and fostering a culture of integrity in our cities and municipalities, we can build a strong foundation against corruption,” the mayor said.

Evangelista, speaking for the VACC, pointed to flood control projects as classic examples of systemic theft. Despite billions of pesos spent, cities and towns are still besieged by floodwaters year after year. He called corruption “the biggest robbery in broad daylight” — and he’s right. Money meant to protect families from floods has instead been pocketed by unscrupulous government officials and contractors.

The VACC, he vowed, will push harder: protecting whistleblowers, empowering ordinary citizens to expose anomalies, and pressing for an investigative body to be insulated from politics. His challenge to the public was clear: stop being spectators. Report, resist, and hold the corrupt accountable. Corruption thrives not only because of the brazenness of the corrupt, but also because of indifference.

Justice Ampuan stressed the importance of the judiciary’s role. “Laws are only as effective as their implementation,” he said, emphasizing the need for an independent justice system that upholds fairness and shields itself from political pressure. “Justice must always be consistent and credible so that people can truly trust the system.”

Our country has no shortage of anti-graft and corruption laws, but weak enforcement and endless court delays render them meaningless. Cases drag on for years until the public forgets, while the powerful escape punishment. Unless loopholes are closed and corruption cases are sped up, confidence and trust of the public in the justice system will remain shaky.

The impact of corruption, particularly on flood control, is all too real for Filipinos who suffer from floodwaters sweeping away or ruining their homes because the budget for protection was siphoned off, because infrastructure funding was a cash cow for conspirators. Every stolen peso is not just money lost — it is a life stolen, opportunity denied, dignity shattered.

The fight against corruption must be unrelenting. More than a decade ago, public outrage erupted over the pork barrel mess, yet corruption continued to thrive. That is the tragedy. It seems our country is still trapped in the same cycle of scandal, outrage, and silence.

A mindset of “wala tayong magagawa (we can’t do anything)” is what sustains the stranglehold of corruption. Fighting graft cannot be left to mayors, advocacy groups, or judiciary members alone. “Laban natin lahat ito—lahat tayo apektado. Dapat may maging accountable at may makulong (We’re all in this fight—we’re all affected. There should be people accountable and jailed),” Mayor Magalong said. He’s right.

The hard truth is that corruption will not end with polite calls for reform or investigations that go nowhere. An end will be in sight only when the “untouchables” languish in jail, when whistleblowers are protected instead of silenced, when communities refuse to let graft slide as a “normal” occurrence.

Indeed, the fight cannot be left to mayors, judges, or advocacy groups alone. It is everyone’s fight. We either stand up against corruption now, or condemn ourselves and our children to live in a Philippines continuously robbed blind from within, perpetually victimized by this “highly systemic organized crime.” ([email protected])