Author: Clift Daluz

FORTY years ago, the Philippines stood on the brink of history, poised to complete a momentous revolution. Under the rule of a dictator, the country shocked the world by leading a peaceful uprising that would come to be known as the People Power Revolution. Those born after EDSA never experienced the historic moment that united Filipinos in a common goal: To unseat Ferdinand Marcos. From a curious perspective, what if the historic uprising happened today in the age of social media, instant messaging, and viral trends? The following is a fictional reimagining of a true event, the eventual ouster of…

New Year has barely settled, and the next massive convergence of Filipino faith is upon us: The Feast of the Black Nazarene. Millions will again flood the streets of Manila for the Traslación – barefoot, packed shoulder to shoulder, driven by panata, prayer, and the belief that a single touch can change a life. It is a powerful sight yet it is also a dangerous one. According to crowd management expert Martin Aguda Jr., two factors determine whether a gathering turns deadly: Crowd density and crowd dynamics. When density hits around 5 to 7 people per square meter, individuals begin to…

It’s Christmas season again – malls are packed, families are out late, and the streets are drowning in red brake lights. For millions of commuters, this should be the time when reliable transport is most accessible. Instead, it has become a yearly struggle just to get a ride home. And once again, Transport Network Vehicle Services (TNVS) like Grab and InDrive are almost impossible to book when people need them the most. Grab insists it has “added more drivers,” but on the ground, commuters know better. The truth is simple and inconvenient: These so-called new drivers are mostly recycled. Walang…

Something is dying in our digital life, and maybe, in us too. I call it Social Media Burnout. It’s neither a movement nor a campaign – just a quiet rebellion. People are simply… disappearing. Scroll through your feed and you’ll see it: Fewer birthdays, fewer opinions, fewer selfies, stories are shorter, and the smiles are more filtered. What used to be a noisy neighborhood of thoughts and laughter has turned into a deserted commercial strip, nothing but brands, trolls, and influencers selling the illusion of relevance. The silence is deafening and it’s eerie. For years, we built our lives online.…

When former Bulacan 3rd District Representative Lorna Silverio declared: “Ito lang kalaban namin sa pulitika ang pilit na kinukonek ako sa issue. Honestly, wala talaga akong ghost project,” it was not a defensive whimper, it was a battle cry. The statement slices through the haze of political intrigue that has recently clouded Bulacan, exposing what is at play – a calculated effort to malign a name that continues to matter. The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) in Bulacan, through District Engineer Edgardo Pingol, has already clarified that there is no ghost project in San Miguel. What critics branded…

The timing is too convenient to be dismissed as coincidence. Royina Garma, the police colonel turned whistleblower who once fled to the United States seeking asylum, is suddenly back in the Philippines. Meanwhile, the United States has formally asked PH to hand over Apollo Quiboloy, the self-proclaimed “Appointed Son of God,” indicted for child sex trafficking and labor racketeering. Let’s call this what it looks like: A possible swap deal in the making. Garma’s return is not an ordinary homecoming of a fugitive official. She is no mere footnote in Duterte’s bloody but failed war on drugs. She once sat…

For once, the flood control scandal might not end in the usual congressional circus. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has announced he will issue an executive order creating an independent commission to dig deep into the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) projects riddled with corruption. “The independent commission will be the investigative arm so that they will continue to investigate whatever information is received,” the President said. This is not another Senate Blue Ribbon show where lawmakers shout at contractors and then quietly tiptoe around their fellow legislators. In the last hearing, senators zeroed in on the bloated contracts…

For several weeks, Baguio Mayor Benjamin Magalong has been parading before the media with his supposed “list” of 67 congressmen allegedly involved in the flood control fiasco. Six weeks of soundbites, headlines, and stern warnings, yet not a single name or document has ever been revealed. Manila Rep. Benny Abante said it best: “Put up, or shut up.” Magalong, of course, is an outsider. He does not sit in Congress. He does not know the ins and outs of how budget politics works, how insertions are negotiated, or how “amendments” quietly find their way into the appropriations law. He may…

Baguio City Mayor Benjie Magalong didn’t just throw a stone into the water, he hurled a boulder straight at the flood control mafia.  On Tuesday, he alleges that at least 67 congressmen are knee-deep in flood control rackets, using contractors as fronts to pocket billions. Some contractors lend their licenses for a “royalty” – 5 percent for regular deals, and just 3 percent when a politician is involved because the project is already guaranteed. Many of these so-called contractors aren’t strangers. They’re wives, children, and cousins of the lawmakers themselves. Some were already contractors before running for office; others became…

It’s almost comical – if it weren’t so tragic – that in 2025, the solution to Metro Manila’s perennial flooding is being pitched not by our Department of Public Works, not by the MMDA, and not by the President himself, but by a tycoon who happens to run a brewery, tollways, and an energy empire. After being called out for allegedly worsening floods, San Miguel Corporation’s Ramon Ang didn’t lash out. He didn’t hide behind lawyers. He did something both admirable and damning: He volunteered to fix Metro Manila’s floods for free. Free drainage construction. Free clearing operations. Free relocation…