PH at crossroads of political crisis

There seems to be an uneasy letup in the gathering storm of the trillion peso flood control scandal.

- 

Critics deplore the seeming reluctance of President Marcos to discipline his allies, following the formation of the Independent Commission on Infrastructure (ICI) which is still gathering momentum in terms of discharging its enormous responsibility to bring the guilty parties to the bar of justice.

As a First Quarter Storm participant, my spirits were lifted at the swelling ranks of those who vigorously joined the Luneta and People Power Monument rallies last Sept. 21.

Half a century later, the same storm clouds are gathering once again. Billions of pesos were appropriated by Congress for dikes, drainage, and waterways that could have spared communities from ruinous floods. Instead, the funds lined pockets, bought favors, and deepened the people's cynicism about government.

The anger is palpable. Young Filipinos, many of them heirs to the People Power generation, are rediscovering the urgency of protest. They have taken to the streets, campuses, and social media, echoing the same outrage that animated us in Dekada '70. This civic energy is not spontaneous. It is fueled by betrayal: the realization that even after Edsa and decades of democratic transition, the old scourge of graft has returned with audacity.

Here and now, context must be defined; a sharp contrast must be drawn. In 2013, when the Janet Napoles pork barrel racket exploded, the nation witnessed what decisive, independent institutions could accomplish.