Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos has vowed to arrest individuals involved in fraudulent flood control projects before Christmas, following devastating typhoons that left parts of the country submerged. The announcement comes amid allegations that construction firm owners, government officials, and lawmakers, including Marcos’ cousin Congressman Martin Romualdez, have embezzled funds intended for infrastructure projects, many of which were either substandard or non-existent. The Department of Finance estimates that corruption in these projects has cost the Philippine economy up to 118.5 billion pesos (approximately $2 billion) from 2023 to 2025. Marcos emphasized that criminal cases against the implicated individuals are nearly complete, stating, “We don’t file cases for optics. We file cases to put people in jail.” He added, “They won’t have a merry Christmas… happy days are over.” The issue of ‘ghost’ infrastructure projects was highlighted in Marcos’ July national address, sparking widespread public outrage. When questioned about his cousin’s involvement, Marcos noted that there is currently insufficient evidence but stressed that “no one is exempted in this investigation.” The Philippines is still recovering from the destruction caused by Super Typhoon Fung-wong, which struck on Sunday, flooding hundreds of villages and claiming at least 27 lives. This disaster followed Typhoon Kalmaegi, which hit the central Philippines days earlier, resulting in at least 232 fatalities.