A Philippine bishop has called on citizens to confront corruption with moral courage and organized action, urging them to become “a flood of hope” stronger than what he described as a “flood of corruption.”
In a message of solidarity to the Anti-Corruption Assembly on February 14, Bishop Gerardo Alminaza said the response to corruption must go beyond anger and outrage.
“If corruption is a flood, then we must be a greater flood — not a flood of rage alone, but a flood of integrity, a flood of vigilance, a flood of organized action,” he said.
Bishop Alminaza currently serves as the bishop of San Carlos and is also the President of Caritas Philippines and Chair of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) Episcopal Commission on Social Action.
The bishop warned that corruption has inflicted its heaviest burden on the poor.
“Public office has too often been treated as private property. Budgets have become bargaining chips. Infrastructure has become an opportunity not for service, but for theft. And the poor pay the price — always the poor,” he said.
He cited children unable to attend school because roads collapsed, farmers whose harvests were washed away, and families living in evacuation centers while funds meant for protection “fatten private accounts.”
Describing the situation as a “national crisis,” Bishop Alminaza called for unity grounded in principle.
“When floodwaters rise, you do not wait politely. You move. But we must move wisely. Our unity must be principled, not blind; inclusive, not sectarian; courageous yet disciplined,” he said.
The bishop stressed accountability at all levels of government, declaring in Filipino that “all those involved must be held accountable, from the top and in every corner.”
He also called for firm legal action, saying in Filipino: “End corruption! Jail the corrupt! Recover what was stolen!”
The assembly comes ahead of the third “Trillion Peso March” organized by the coalition Tindig Pilipinas on February 25, which coincides with the commemoration of the largely peaceful 1986 EDSA People Power Revolution.
Organizers expect more than 30,000 participants to attend the gathering. Activities at the EDSA People Power Monument are scheduled from 3 p.m. to 5:30 p.m., followed by a 6 p.m. Mass at the EDSA Shrine to be led by Archbishop Socrates Villegas.
Caritas Philippines will hold a concert at 8 p.m., marking the hour closest to the time in 1986 when the Marcos Sr. administration was ousted.
Bishop Alminaza said that beyond punishment, the country must build “a new culture” rooted in honest public service, transparent governance, and participatory citizenship.
