There is a certain audacity in the way public officials explain the mismanagement of our nation's funds—an almost comedic confidence in the absurdity of their reasoning. Take, for instance, the recent revelation that a significant sum has been siphoned from PhilHealth, the national health insurance system, and is now, by their own admission, gone. But fear not, they say! The missing funds will be included in next year's budget. How reassuring! What an elegant solution! Except, wait—where will this budget allocation come from? The answer is as predictable as it is infuriating: from our taxes. That is, the money taken from PhilHealth, the contributions of millions of Filipinos over decades, has been used up—on what, we can only speculate—and now, they will replace it using fresh funds from us, the taxpayers. Let’s break this down: We paid into PhilHealth to secure healthcare coverage. The government took that money and used it elsewhere. Now, instead of recovering the...
Political legitimacy is not derived from brute force or inherited status; it is contingent on public trust, a commodity that, once depleted, is nearly impossible to recover. The latest opinion polls suggest that President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. is rapidly exhausting this essential resource. Reports indicate that his approval rating has plummeted to unprecedented lows, with some suggesting a catastrophic decline into single digits. This is not merely a statistical aberration—it is a profound indictment of his administration. For context, no Filipino president in the post-Marcos era has ever experienced such a precipitous collapse in public approval. Historically, even the most controversial leaders have maintained a baseline level of support, often bolstered by patronage networks, propaganda mechanisms, and the inertia of entrenched political structures. That Marcos Jr. has failed to sustain even this artificial cushion speaks volumes about the growing public disillusionment. Approval ...