Thousands of members of an influential religious group started gathering in Manila on Sunday for a rally to call for accountability in the Philippine government over a widening corruption scandal.
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Iglesia ni Cristo members, wearing white shirts, assembled in the historic Quirino Grandstand and nearby streets in Manila city. Police estimated the crowd at 14,500 as of 8am local time. Some camped out overnight for a programme expected to start late in the afternoon.
The Christian religious group earlier said it is not fighting the government and that it is a peaceful movement against corruption. The mega church holds political clout as it is known for endorsing candidates and voting as a bloc during elections.
There is mounting pressure on President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr’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 this week as former congressman Zaldy Co accused Marcos of receiving 25 billion pesos 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.
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The accusation is “a lie, propaganda”, Presidential Communications Office Undersecretary Claire Castro said in a video statement on Saturday. The president said he does not “want to even dignify” what the ex-lawmaker is saying, the office said separately.