The enemy is not the virus alone

When COVID-19 hit the Philippines, our government started to loan vast amounts of money from various international and domestic banks. Per the Department of Finance, the national debt will hit up to P13 trillion when the Duterte administration ends.

But the Commission on Audit (COA) has revealed deficiencies in how the government uses such funds. Among the agencies flagged were the Department of Health, Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (sanitary napkins bought from a construction firm?), and the Department of Labor and Employment (for payment of P15 million to its guest lecturers from 2018-2020, with one receiving about P3.5 million!).

The COA reports are concrete bases that public funds were mishandled and stolen from their supposed beneficiaries. It is heartbreaking to know that our government officials were also the ones exacerbating our current situation. Majority of us are suffering from severe poverty due to the lockdowns and job losses, yet people in the government are shamelessly amassing public funds.

These COA reports tell us that our enemy is not the virus alone, but corrupt politicians, too. It is our hard-earned money that these audacious crocodiles are hoarding for themselves while we taxpayers are the ones who will be left to pay the national debt.

MARLON P. LABASTIDA
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