Philippine defence, military chiefs slam call to dump Marcos as scandal flares

The Philippine defence and military chiefs rejected a call for the country’s armed forces to withdraw support from President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr in response to public outrage over allegations of massive corruption in flood control projects that have implicated several congressmen and public works officials and sparked pockets of street protests.

Defence Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jnr and military chief of staff General Romeo Brawner Jnr issued a joint statement late on Friday expressing their rejection of “all attempts to patronise the Armed Forces of the Philippines by certain groups that insinuate or suggest unconstitutional, unilateral interventions”.

They did not elaborate, but underscored that the 160,000-member military was non-partisan, professional and “abides by the constitution through the chain-of-command”.

The House of Representatives, the Senate and Marcos’ administration have been investigating alleged substandard and non-existent flood control projects in separate televised inquiries. Dozens of legislators, senators, construction companies and public works engineers were identified and accused of pocketing huge kickbacks that financed lavish lifestyles and high-stakes casino gambling.

The corruption scandal has been especially sensitive in a poverty-stricken Southeast Asian country that is prone to deadly typhoons and floodings that devastate entire towns and villages multiple times each year.

Unlike recent violent protests in Nepal and Indonesia, street rallies against alleged abuses in the Philippines have been smaller and relatively peaceful. Outrage is largely vented online, including by Catholic Church leaders, business executives and retired generals.

  

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