Philippine President Marcos Jr faces impeachment complaint over alleged ghost flood projects

On 22 January, civil society groups in the Philippines filed an impeachment complaint against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr, accusing him of large-scale corruption through the misuse of public funds for ghost infrastructure projects.

Endorsed by the left-wing Makabayan bloc, the complaint alleges that Marcos engineered a scheme to siphon over 545.6 billion pesos (approximately US$9.2 billion) from the national budget, particularly from flood control allocations, to benefit political allies and contractors.

According to a summary of the complaint, the funds were allegedly diverted into a “private war chest” in preparation for the 2025 midterm elections. The complaint also accuses the president of directly soliciting kickbacks, though this particular charge is based on unverified claims by a former congressman who fled the country and remains under investigation.

The complaint was submitted to the Office of the Secretary General in the House of Representatives in accordance with procedural rules. However, it was not officially marked as received, as the Secretary General was reportedly not present at the time.

Under the Philippine constitution, the passage of articles of impeachment by the House would trigger a Senate trial. A conviction would lead to the president’s removal from office and disqualification from holding future public posts.

Despite the complaint’s serious allegations, the prospect of it progressing remains uncertain. Marcos continues to enjoy the support of a majority of members in the House of Representatives. If the House justice committee dismisses the complaint and the plenary fails to overturn that decision with the required number of votes, no new impeachment case can be filed until next year. This imposes a constitutional one-year bar on successive complaints.

Members of the Makabayan bloc, including legislators Sara Elago, Louise Co, and Antonio Tinio, and activists Teddy Casiño and Renato Reyes, presented copies of the complaint at a press event on the same day.

Presidential spokeswoman Claire Castro told reporters that Marcos was recovering after spending the night under medical observation for an undisclosed illness and had yet to review the complaint. “We cannot address that as of now if we don’t have the details of their complaints,” she said.

Marcos has previously claimed that he was the first to raise concerns about ghost projects and has cited his administration’s anti-corruption efforts. Ongoing investigations have implicated multiple construction firms, officials, and lawmakers.

Complainant Liza Maza, however, rejected these assertions. “We think the investigation he initiated is just a cover-up,” she said. “Because the truth is, he is the head of this corruption.”

Later on 22 January, another group linked to former president Rodrigo Duterte attempted to file a second impeachment complaint, also citing corruption allegations, but left the House of Representatives without submitting any documents.

A separate impeachment complaint was filed on 20 January by a local lawyer. It cited unverified allegations of drug abuse and Marcos’ handling of Duterte’s arrest and extradition to the International Criminal Court. Like the later filing, it remains unacknowledged by the House leadership.

Under Philippine law, any citizen may file an impeachment complaint if it is endorsed by at least one member of the House. However, unless endorsed by sufficient congressional support and cleared by the House justice committee, the complaints are unlikely to advance.

As of this report, the House leadership has not issued a formal response to either of the recent impeachment filings.