The Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP) said the impeachment complaint to be filed against President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. is fully justified, as it exposes a deliberate, top-down scheme that plundered at least P545.6 billion in flood control funds while farmers and rural communities were left vulnerable to destructive floods and climate disasters. KMP joined a mass action outside the House of Representatives this morning in support of the filing ofimpeachment complaint. KMP’s secretary general and farmer-leader Ronnie Manalo is among the complainants.

According to Manalo, the complaint details how Marcos Jr. “personally engineered, approved, and implemented a budgetary system that siphoned at least P545.6 billion in flood control funds from 2022 to 2025 funds that should have protected lives, farms, and rural livelihoods.”

The Articles of Impeachment argued the following: President Marcos Jr betrayed the public trust by institutionalizing systemic corruption and patronage by adopting the BBM Parametric Formula; Marcos Jr committed abuse of discretionary power over unprogrammed appropriations; and Marcos Jr has direct personal involvement in kickback schemes by personally directing the insertion of P100 billion in anomalous projects in the 2025 national budget.

“At the height of climate disasters from El Nino to massive flooding, Marcos Jr. turned flood control into a nationwide racket,” KMP said. This is clearly a betrayal of public trust.”

Central to the scheme is the so-called ‘BBM Parametric Formula,’ which subordinates technical requirements and community safety to political patronage. This formula revived the pork barrel system previously struck down by the Supreme Court, laying the groundwork for massive kickbacks, advance ‘commitments,’ and payoffs to favored officials and contractors.

The complaint also further exposes the unprecedented ballooning of Unprogrammed Appropriations, reaching P807 billion in 2023 and P734 billion in 2024. They assert that Marcos Jr. exercised sole authority to release P213.8 billion in these standby funds, effectively bypassing Congressional oversight and converting the national budget into a slush fund.

To finance these questionable projects, the Executive diverted PhilHealth and PDIC funds to the National Treasury. The Supreme Court has already ruled the P60-billion PhilHealth transfer unconstitutional.

Testimonies and internal DPWH documents including the so-called “Cabral Files” directly link the Office of the President to project insertions, coding of “allocables,” and systematic kickback collection. Former officials admitted that at least P56 billion in payoffs were generated, with cash delivered to Palace officials.

Meanwhile, farmers and rural communities continue to bear the cost of the orchestrated plunder and corruption. Hundreds of flood control projects were found to be ghost or ineffective, with DENR data showing only 23% effectiveness nationwide. Flood-prone agricultural areas were neglected, while politically favored provinces received bloated projects.

“For farmers, floods mean hunger, debt, and displacement. Marcos Jr. chose plunder over protection,” KMP stressed.

KMP fully supports the impeachment complaint endorsed by Makabayan lawmakers and people’s organizations. “Lahat ng sangkot ay dapat managot, simula sa tuktok.” ###