In the aftermath of Zaldy Co’s expose implicating President Marcos Jr. in the current widespread corruption scandal, the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) calls for ending the reign of thieves through revolution.
The CPP declared that, “Zaldy Co is a thief who has amassed wealth from bureaucrat capitalism while holding the reins of the congressional appropriations committee in most of the years since 2016—both under Duterte and Marcos. Like all the lower rung bureaucrat capitalists, Zaldy Co could only have carried out his large-scale plunder of the people’s money since 2016, with the direct authorization from the top of Malacañang—Duterte then, Marcos now”.
As of this writing, Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin and Budget Secretary Amenah Pangandaman -- named as operators of Marcos Jr. in corruption in Co’s expose -- resigned, purportedly for “delicadeza” but definitely aimed at deflecting accountability of Marcos Jr..
On a similar note, the militant Makabayan bloc in the House of Representatives said it considers the statements of former Ako Bicol party-list Rep. Zaldy Co as a “damning exposé that directly implicates President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., (former) House Speaker Martin Romualdez, and other high-ranking officials in the systematic corruption of our national budget through massive illegal insertions.”
The Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (BAYAN) and other progressive groups demanded President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Vice President Sara Duterte’s resignation.
BAYAN chairperson Teddy Casino in a press conference on Monday said the top two elected officials of the country are both corrupt and should be made to resign.
He said they reject constitutional succession frameworks as top government officials are involved in the festering corruption scandal in government.
To replace them, BAYAN called for the creation of a national transition council that will temporarily govern the country as a democratic civilian authority, rejecting military involvement in the proposed body.
Personalities to compose the council may come from judiciary, congress and political groups with no involvement in corruption, he added.
The former Bayan Muna lawmaker said details of the formation of the council must be discussed with other political forces, citing EDSA I and II as well as suggestions of a transition council to replace the Gloria Macapagal Arroyo government as historical lessons.
“Details will be threshed out in discussions in the next weeks. But first, Marcos and Duterte must go,” he said.
As massive anti-corruption protests are ongoing, a transition council must already be discussed for accountability and justice to be achieved, Casino further said.