I Photo by Miltiadis Fragkidies on Unsplash
2025 in the Philippines cements its place as the year of infamy, unmasked through investigative scrutiny, revealing a web of corruption, disasters, and elite evasions that crushed public trust. From typhoon deaths tied to stolen flood funds to unexplained vanishings and economic sabotage, systemic patronage has shielded the powerful while ordinary Filipinos suffer.
2025 saw severe typhoons and flood graft
Twin typhoons in November claimed 259 lives and displaced millions, exposing the Trillion Peso scandal where ₱1.9 trillion in flood-control funds fueled ghost projects and kickbacks under Marcos allies. No probes were conducted into casino losses by implicated officials, who evaded civil forfeiture through offshore assets, leaving disaster victims without recourse.
Real estate vacancy hit 26% in Metro Manila by year-end, signaling a bubble burst amid POGO bans and oversupply, while the PSEi plunged to three-year lows, down 12% yearly on scandal-driven pessimism. Stock stagnation reflected a slowdown in GDP to 4.4% in Q3, as investor flight deepened.
2025 saw controversial gold sales
Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) faced accusations of secretly selling gold reserves, with Duterte claiming Marcos offloaded holdings amid peso woes—contradicting BSP’s official stance of portfolio management. Reserves dipped from 165 tonnes early-year to 131.88 tonnes by Q3, valued at $18 billion in November, as Monetary Board member Diokno urged profit-taking on “excessive” holdings following price surges. Governor Remolona defended sales as routine hedging rather than distress signals.
2025 had its fair share of economic crises
PSEi hit three-year lows, down 12% amid scandal fallout and a 4.4% Q3 GDP slump, while Metro Manila real estate vacancies soared to 26% amid a POGO exodus and fears of an oversupply bubble. Patronage-riddled PhilHealth diverted funds to allies amid healthcare shortfalls.
Among the mysteries of 2025, Ex-DPWH Usec Maria Catalina Cabral’s suspicious death on a Benguet cliff days before flood-scandal testimony, with family permitting autopsy amid tampering suspicions. Cockfighters’ disappearances escalated, 34 sabungeros linked to Taal Lake dumping over elite betting rings. These threads, woven with Marcos-Duterte rifts and AI disinformation, demand unrelenting probes for justice.
Civil forfeiture stalled as officials like those in flood projects dodged asset seizures through offshore trusts, while casino debts went unchased despite links to bribes. Protests persist into December, demanding independent probes and dynasty bans, but systemic patronage endures. This infamy calls for radical reforms to reclaim stolen futures.
The Philippines lacks robust direct incentives for rooftop solar installations, hindering widespread adoption amid high upfront costs and bureaucratic hurdles. Existing policies such as net metering and RA 9513 tax rebates fall short of aggressive subsidies elsewhere, leaving households to bear the full costs without meaningful rebates or low-interest loans. Net metering allows excess power to be sold to utilities, but is capped at 100kW and requires complex ERC approvals, with no cash rebates or VAT exemptions for residential users. The Expanded Rooftop Solar Program (ESRP) targets commercial sales but offers minimal homeowner support, while Pag-IBIG loans classify installations as home improvements, making them ineligible for preferential rates. Critics note stalled GEAP 2 bids at 9.39MW against 260MW goals, signaling weak enforcement.
“Integrity Software languishes in the form of the CADENA ACT, with bills pending in both Houses of Congress. The CADENA Act excludes local government units (LGUs) for whatever reason, the same LGUs that receive allocations from the national tax allotments (NTA, formerly IRA).”
The Philippines’ 2025 social welfare assistance totals around P176 billion across key programs, representing a substantial portion of DSWD’s budget. Redirecting these funds to livelihood programs could amplify the impact on GDP through higher multipliers. The estimated 2025 GDP stands at approximately $489 billion USD. Combined allocation sums to roughly P176 billion (AICS P44.7B + AKAP P26.15B + MAIP P41.16B + 4Ps P114B), or about 2.8% of the projected 2025 GDP at PHP 27.6 trillion (using ~PHP 57/USD). Shifting to livelihoods (e.g., microfinance, skills training) could raise multipliers to 1.5-2.5x, as investments generate sustained income and jobs versus one-off consumption. It yields a total impact of P264-440 billion (1.5-2.5x P176B), or a 0.5-1.6% GDP uplift, prioritizing human capital, such as expanded 4Ps-style conditions.
Integrity Software languishes in the form of the CADENA ACT, with bills pending in both Houses of Congress. The CADENA Act excludes local government units (LGUs) for whatever reason, the same LGUs that receive allocations from the national tax allotments (NTA, formerly IRA).
The Act references cryptographic signatures but does not explicitly address biometric requirements. This proposed law still relies on civil society and investigative journalists to ferret out anomalies, rather than on programming that automatically flags excesses and cross-connections between proponents and bid awards. Workflow dashboards are absent that would monitor process applications at the minutiae of the transaction window.
The ownership transition of the Overseas Filipino Bank from LandBank to Overseas Filipinos fails to earn the Presidential imprimatur of certification as urgent while legislation remains quagmires in Congress.
Overseas voting registration again requires a personal appearance at foreign posts despite the availability of online registration. Given distances between consulates and their constituents, personal registration merely serves to disenfranchise millions of overseas Filipinos.
2026 could not possibly be worse. Hope springs eternal. Happy New Year!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Dr. Crispin Fernandez advocates for overseas Filipinos, public health, transformative political change, and patriotic economics. He is also a community organizer, leader, and freelance writer.
