SC magsalita ka.

The Government Is the Problem. 

It’s Time for the Supreme Court to Speak.

By Dr. Anthony “Tony” Leachon

In a nation drowning in debt, disaster, and despair, one truth rises above the noise: the government itself is the root of systemic corruption. This is no longer about isolated wrongdoing. It is a deliberate, institutional betrayal—engineered through the national budget, approved by those in power, and paid for by the suffering of the Filipino people.

The 2025 General Appropriations Bill is not a budget—it is a blueprint for injustice. According to the Ateneo School of Government, the Department of Public Works and Highways, tasked with building and protecting our communities, saw its budget slashed. 

Meanwhile, the Office of the President ballooned by 461%, the Senate by 275%, and the Office of the Vice President by 47%. The House of Representatives received ₱17.3 billion. The President, ₱5 billion. The Senate, ₱1 billion. 

These are not allocations—they are excesses. And behind them lie the shadows of confidential funds, political favors, and silent plunder.

But the most damning revelation is this: the ₱89.9 billion originally stripped from PhilHealth—amidst a zero subsidy for the nation’s health insurance—was quietly returned by President Marcos just one day before the September 21 rallies commemorating the declaration of Martial Law. A move made under pressure, not principle. A move that exposes the fragility of truth in the face of public outrage.

And yet, we wait. We wait for the Supreme Court to rule on the petition against this mangled budget. 

We wait for clarity, for courage, for justice. Former Chief Justice Reynato Puno calls this moment “judicial legislation”—a time when the Court must not only interpret the law, but rescue the Republic from collapse.

This is not just a fiscal issue. It is the biggest corruption scandal in Philippine history. It is a moral reckoning. And it demands more than outrage—it demands action.

The consequences are clear: a nation where health is defunded, infrastructure is neglected, and power is hoarded. A nation where agencies borrow to survive while billions are siphoned into silence. A nation where the budget becomes a weapon—not of service, but of control.

We must not turn a blind eye. We must not remain silent. The wheel of justice must turn—and it must turn now.

This is the moment.

For truth.

For accountability.

For the Filipino people.

READ: Ateneo Report on Budget Distribution

#RelentlessForChange 

#ForTheFilipinoFuture 

#HealthWithHonor 

#KleptopirosisIsReal 

Tony Leachon