Manila, Philippines – Thousands of people have gathered in the Philippine capital, Manila, demanding President Ferdinand Marcos Jr’s resignation over a corruption scandal linked to government spending on flood-control infrastructure.
The march, organised by the Kilusang Bayan Kontra-Kurakot or the People’s Movement Against Corruption (KBKK), began at the Luneta National Park in Manila on Sunday, with protesters expected to march on to the presidential palace.
It is the last display of public anger over the “Trillion-Peso” scandal, in which powerful politicians, including Marcos’s allies, are accused of pocketing billions of pesos in bribes for contracts on flood-control infrastructure that ended up being defective or were never built at all.
Extensive damage from two recent powerful typhoons, which killed more than 250 people, has spurred public outrage.
Two cabinet ministers have resigned over the scandal, while a former lawmaker accused in the case, Zaldy Co, has alleged that Marcos directed him to add $1.7bn to the budget for “dubious public works” while he headed an appropriations committee.
The president has denied the claims.
Among those at Sunday’s protest was 21-year-old student Matt Wovi Villanueva, who also took part in a similar protest at the presidential palace in September. That protest turned violent with the police arresting some 300 people.
Villanueva said he was beaten and detained for five days then.
“Compared to September, we have more reasons to go back to the streets now,” Villanueva told media. “They keep treating us like fools. If we want real justice, we need Marcos and [Vice President Sara] Duterte to resign.”
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