Mega church gathers in Manila to protest against Philippine corruption

[MANILA] More than half a million people of an influential religious group in Manila on Sunday (Nov 16) took part in a rally to call for accountability in the Philippine government over a widening corruption scandal.

Iglesia ni Cristo members, wearing white shirts, assembled in the historic Quirino Grandstand and nearby streets in Manila city.

The Christian religious group earlier said it’s not fighting the government, and that it’s a peaceful movement against corruption. The mega church holds political clout as it’s known for endorsing candidates and voting as a bloc during elections.  

There is mounting pressure on President Ferdinand Marcos Jr’s government to immediately prosecute those involved in corruption related to flood infrastructure funds worth billions of pesos. The scandal slowed economic growth last quarter, as state spending and consumption slumped.

Tension escalated on Saturday as former Congressman Zaldy Co accused Marcos of receiving 25 billion pesos (S$549.7 million) in kickbacks from 100 billion pesos of project spending the president had allegedly ordered to be included in the 2025 budget. The allegations were aired in a multipart video released by Co over the last two days.

The accusation is “a lie, propaganda,” Presidential Communications Office Undersecretary Claire Castro said in a video statement on Saturday. The president said he doesn’t “want to even dignify” what the ex-lawmaker is saying, the office said separately.

The worsening domestic political uncertainty spawned by the graft revelations has also rocked investor sentiment. The peso recently fell to a record low against the dollar while stocks had plunged to make the Philippines the world’s worst-performing market.

The larger and likewise influential Catholic Church cautioned against exploiting political issues ahead of the rallies, warning that “these allegations, especially when released at sensitive moments,” may inflame public sentiment “or be used to influence political outcomes.”

The alleged scheme to pilfer billions of pesos meant for flood-mitigation projects was exposed by Marcos in July, and ensuing investigations implicated public works officials and several lawmakers, who have denied wrongdoing. The probes also uncovered that most of the projects were either substandard or nonexistent, as funds were allegedly pocketed by politicians and their cohorts.

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The unfolding scandal has triggered public outrage, which further intensified after a series of deadly and destructive tropical storms recently hit the South-east Asian nation. Marcos has assured the public that his administration is moving to jail corrupt officials soon, and recover stolen public funds.

This is the second time this year that Iglesia has mobilised a rally. In January, the religious group led a demonstration against Vice President Sara Duterte’s impeachment case, which was eventually shelved. The mega church endorsed both Marcos and Duterte in the 2022 elections, but the alliance between the leaders later collapsed.

Sunday’s rallies are set to continue through Tuesday, with 16,000 police officers deployed to enforce peace and order, according to local media. The Manila city government is shutting schools until then, while dozens of roads have been closed. BLOOMBERG