We, the Makabayan bloc in the House of Representatives, demand that President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Vice President Sara Duterte immediately disclose the full extent of their acceptance of prohibited campaign donations from government contractors and submit themselves to the legal and political consequences of their brazen violations of election law.
The recent exposé by the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism reveals a blatant violation of Section 95 of the Omnibus Election Code, which explicitly prohibits candidates from receiving donations from entities doing business with the government.
The evidence is staggering and undeniable. Based on his Statement of Contributions and Expenditures (SOCE), the sworn and notarized disclosures of campaign contributions received and expenses incurred during the 2022 National Elections, President Marcos received P20 million from contractor Rodulfo Hilot Jr., whose Rudhil Construction saw its government contracts balloon from P2.7 billion in 2023 to P3.5 billion by 2024—nearly a billion-peso increase under the Marcos administration. He also received P1 million from Jonathan Quirante, whose Quirante Construction experienced the most dramatic surge: from P1.9 billion in 2022 to P3 billion in 2023—a staggering billion-peso leap in just one year after bankrolling the President’s campaign.
Meanwhile, according to her own SOCE, Vice President Duterte benefited from P19.9 million in campaign advertisements paid for by Glenn Escandor’s Esdevco Realty Corporation. Escandor’s Genesis88 Construction subsequently became Davao del Sur’s top flood-control contractor, amassing P2.9 billion in projects marked “completed” during the first half of President Marcos’s term.
These are not campaign contributions—they are down payments on the wholesale auction of government contracts. Election law explicitly prohibits candidates from accepting donations from entities holding government contracts. This law exists precisely to prevent the conflict of interest now rotting the core of our governance.
This is bureaucrat capitalism laid bare. While millions of Filipinos struggle with poverty, inadequate schools, collapsing health services, and recurrent flooding, our highest officials have turned public infrastructure into a private enrichment scheme. The two highest officials of the land cannot now wash their hands of the corrupt system of kickbacks, ghost projects, overpriced procurement, and substandard infrastructure exposed in the ongoing flood control scandal.
The recent replacement of House Speaker Romualdez and Senate President Escudero demonstrate that public outrage cannot be ignored. However, accountability must reach the highest offices. We demand that President Marcos and Vice President Duterte:
- Publicly acknowledge and immediately disclose all campaign donations received from government contractors during the 2022 elections;
- Waive any claims to immunity, courtesy, or privilege, and submit to thorough investigation by the Commission on Elections, the Office of the Ombudsman, and other relevant bodies;
- Accept the legal and political consequences of their actions, including potential impisonment and disqualification from holding public office if found guilty of electoral violations.
We likewise call on the COMELEC to investigate all other elected officials that disclosed receiving prohibited campaign contributions in their SOCE. Furthermore, we call for the suspension of all ongoing contracts and future bidding participation of identified donor-contractors, including Rudhil Construction, Quirante Construction, and Genesis88, pending investigation.
This scandal confirms what we have long known: that the state under elite capture serves not the masses but the ruling class and their cronies.
Every flooded street, every overpriced bridge, every dilapidated classroom stands as evidence of this betrayal.
We call on the public: continue to transform your righteous anger into organized action. Today, the people are showing their power. We must sustain this momentum until the highest officials are held accountable.
No one is above the law. Not even the President and Vice President of the Republic. ###
