NDF-Bikol stands united with patriotic lawmakers and the entire Filipino nation in condemning the nonstop squander of public funds led by Bongbong Marcos and Sara Duterte. Recently, investigations are demanded for the P125 million confidential funds that Duterte spent in 2022 while the proposed P1.4 billion budget for Marcos Jr.’s travels was met with strong opposition. This and other incidents of corruption, servility, anti-poor stance and fascism of these two are more than enough bases to campaign for their removal from office. In the face of the Filipino masses’ plight, Marcos and Duterte’s appropriation of funds from the public’s blood and sweat for themselves is the very picture of atrocious greed.

But what’s more insulting is the way they pay no mind to these issues. They are discontented still even with the billions of pork barrel they purloin from discretionary, confidential and intelligence funds of their offices nor with the P500 billion Maharlika Investment Fund (MIF) that they railroaded over the last few months.

They want to squeeze and drain the public coffers to further thicken their pockets while the people are living worse than rats deep in hunger and penury. Despite the illegal use of public funds, Duterte still asked for another P500 million confidential funds for the Office of the Vice President for 2024. This is 1/5 of the whole office’s budget. Aside from this is the P250 million confidential funds she is asking for as the secretary of the Department of Education. Meanwhile, Marcos defends the staggering amount of funds he wants to appropriate for his travels even though his cabinet officials themselves admit that most of the promised projects that supposedly resulted from his trips abroad have yet to materialize. In fact, only nine out of 130 projects were realized since last year.

Considering their own and their sycophants’ flagrant corruption, it is judicious for the Filipino people to condemn and renounce the US-Marcos Jr. regime. Their pillage of hard-earned public funds that should have been allocated for projects that would have truly benefitted the people must not go unchallenged. The people must campaign for substantial wage increase, additional adequate ayuda for the public, price subsidies, government intervention on the uncontrollable price spikes and other concrete steps that directly address the pressing fundamental demands of the nation.