Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla on Friday drew a parallel between President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s anti-graft declaration in his previous State of the Nation Address (SONA) and the revolutionary impact of Dr. Jose Rizal’s masterpiece novels, Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo, noting that both served as catalysts to awaken citizens against systemic injustice.
During a press briefing on July 17, Remulla shared that his reflections on the President’s prior legislative address brought to mind the themes of Rizal’s literature.
“May nabasa ako on the way to work. Naisip ko lang ‘yung isang binabasa ko noong araw pa ‘yung Noli Me Tangere at El Filibusterismo. ‘Yun ang nagsimula ng pag-pukaw ng utak ng tao na hindi na pwede ang ginagawa ng mga Kastila noong araw,” he said.
Remulla observed that Marcos’ remarks during his 2025 address functioned in a comparable manner by demanding an end to systemic government corruption and exploitation.
“‘Yung ginawa ng Presidente last year is something similar. Dapat tumigil na ‘yan. ‘Mahiya naman kayo.’ I think it’s a very good move on his part, and we just have to sail through the rough waters of public expectation kasi ‘yan talaga ang problema sa pulitika,” he went on.
The Ombudsman acknowledged that the current administration is navigating intense public scrutiny, as citizens have grown weary and restless after enduring decades of delayed societal transformations.
“Ang tao impatient na, matagal nang nagtitiis ang taumbayan. Ako, batid na batid ko ’yon,” he said.
Currently, the Office of the Ombudsman is spearheading independent probes into suspected irregularities surrounding flood mitigation initiatives, alongside potential conflicts of interest regarding legislators suspected of doubling as state contractors.
Historically, Rizal’s Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo earned renown for unmasking colonial corruption under Spanish authorities, inspiring patriotism, and laying the groundwork for the Philippine Revolution.
In his preceding SONA, Marcos directly called out public officials and private contractors tied to anomalous flood control ventures, famously reprimanding them with the phrase,
“Mahiya naman kayo.”
The Chief Executive further alleged that several heavily funded infrastructure projects were mere “pigments of imagination,” explicitly linking the failure of critical flood-defense systems during severe weather disasters to deep-seated corruption.