Marcos: Battle vs corruption a ‘major surgery' PH needs

President Marcos described his administration's anti-corruption campaign as a painful but necessary “major surgery,” saying the country must “bleed” in the short term to remove systemic problems that have plagued the government for decades.

- By ARGYLL CYRUS GEDUCOS, JOSEPH PEDRAJAS, JAMES LOYOLA, and CZARINA NICOLE ONG-KI

REP. MARCOS AT ICI -- Presidential son Ilocos Norte Rep. Sandro Marcos arrives at the Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) on Thursday, Dec. 4, 2025, for a voluntary executive session on flood control initiatives. (Contributed photo)

(Contributed photo)

Speaking at the annual Year-end Media Fellowship in Malacañan, the President said he knew the reforms would be disruptive, but insisted that the old ways of doing things had to be dismantled to prevent entrenched abuse from continuing.

"We are trying precisely to change the entire system," he said Wednesday evening, Dec. 3.

"When you have to excise a cancer out of such a complicated system, you need to do some very major surgery. And when you do that, you will bleed. And that is what we had to go through," he added.

Marcos asked for the Filipinos' understanding as he acknowledged that they are bearing the brunt of the transition.

"I am sorry that the people suffered because of it, but it had to be done," he said, emphasizing that decades-old practices would "just continue" without drastic intervention.

Despite this, the President is confident the country can recover quickly.

"We are Filipinos. We may be bleeding now, but we will also heal very, very quickly," he said.

'We know what we are doing'

Marcos rejected claims that the administration is directionless, saying he and his advisers are fully aware of the steps being taken to overhaul government processes.

"Between myself and those who are helping me and advising me, I think we know how," he said. "It's not as if we are lost, and we do not know what we are going to do. We know what we are doing." The President vowed to sustain efforts to curb corruption, abuse, and entitlement within the bureaucracy.