Credibility

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It has been over three months since Christmas and we have yet to see some big names brought to court for the ghost flood control projects. An estimated P1 trillion of the people’s money has reportedly been lost in various corruption-marred pork barrel projects under DPWH.

The Ombudsman who promised to make some big shots spend Christmas in jail is finding it difficult to even get the Secretary General of Congress to submit SALNs of congressmen under investigation. He has threatened to suspend the Secretary General from office if the subpoena from the Ombudsman’s office is continually ignored.

Quite dramatic. But all it would take, if this administration is not doing a moro-moro, is for BBM to call the House Speaker and ask for the SALNs the Ombudsman wants. So much time has been wasted with no tangible results. And that’s just the first step.

 It is important that they start showing some progress in this ghost projects drama. This is particularly important now that the nation is facing a grave energy crisis that will surely morph into a crisis in food and livelihood as well.

BBM needs all the credibility he can muster to lead the nation in this difficult time. So far, he has not delivered on his promise to jail those behind this scam. Zero trust.

Credibility also means telling the people the truth about our current situation. BBM and his officials have been insisting everything is normal when we can all see things are all but normal. They claim they don’t want the people to panic.

But the oil crisis will definitely get worse with the war seemingly becoming one of those prolonged American excursions in the Middle East. When the worst inevitably happens, people will know BBM and his officials didn’t tell the truth.

 Good thing that Energy Secretary Sharon Garin realized she must manage expectations and decided to tell the real score. This became especially necessary after government propagandists went to town about the so-called deal our diplomats got from Iran to allow our tankers free passage in the Strait of Hormuz.

People started thinking that the agreement means oil product prices will soon start going down. It really isn’t as simple as that and Secretary Garin did the right thing in setting things right.

 So, the strait opens for two weeks as part of what is supposedly an interim agreement between the US and Iran. Some tankers that had been previously loaded will now be able to move their cargo through the strait. But that will still be far from normal.

A report suggested that as of March 6, 2026, over 400 tankers were stranded in the Persian Gulf. Of those, roughly 60 are very large crude carriers (VLCCs) anchored or trapped inside the Gulf.

The first order of business is to clear the long queue of empty tankers which typically take up to 48 hours each to take on a cargo of oil. As of April 7, 2026, the International Energy Agency reports that 72 energy assets in the region have been damaged, with roughly one-third classified as “severely” or “very severely” damaged.

Refineries and oil production facilities that were shut down will take some time to get back to speed. The owners, insurers and crews of tankers will also have to feel comfortable with how safe it is to move, regardless of assurances from Trump.  

Experts say that any semblance of normalcy cannot be expected until at least four months after a permanent end to the war is reached, not just a truce. For all practical purposes, consider the rest of the year as gone.

So, congratulations to Secretary Garin for having the balls to tell it as it is. That keeps everyone on alert, practicing energy conservation and taking steps to survive the crisis. If things get better by some miracle, at least we were prepared to suffer the worst. Secretary Garin scored one for credibility.

But the credibility of BBM will remain low for so long as the Ombudsman is unable to file appropriate charges against some big shots from Congress who, from hearings and other documents we have seen, are apparently deeply involved in plundering our Treasury in the pork barrel project scams.

A report of the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism (PCIJ), revealed that BBM green-lit P213.8 billion in unprogrammed funds for so-called “priority” projects in 2023–2024. And most of those projects prioritized graft over the public good, PCIJ observed.

BBM was probably just acting in line with the “kalakaran” or mode of behavior expected of our politicians. This does not absolve BBM but it requires him to explain his actions. If he wants to show he did not benefit from those projects, he must be more active in recovering the stolen cash and sending offenders to jail.

Our government has never been credible when it comes to fighting corruption and this administration has done nothing to change that impression. Except for Erap, no high-ranking official has ever been convicted of corruption and have actually served time. Even with Erap, PGMA quickly pardoned him.

It doesn’t help that the Independent Commission for Infrastructure closed shop. Given its short life, it seems that ICI was created to manage the public image of BBM, to show he is doing something about the ghost projects. Now, ICI’s usefulness has expired.

The ICI recommended filing charges against two senators, two members of Congress, a DPWH engineer and a COA commissioner for plunder. Will cases be filed soon?

For BBM’s credibility, the oil crisis should not be used to buy time in the hope that people will forget the corruption cases. Nope, the trillion pesos stolen from us will be hard to forget.

BBM can rescue his plunging approval rating by moving faster to hold even his relatives and friends who are involved in the mess fully accountable.

Boo Chanco’s email address is [email protected]. Follow him on X @boochanco