“Cycles of Corruption,” a public lecture by Nathan Gilbert Quimpo, is based on a series of articles published in Rappler and Business World in 2025, which delve into how patronage, clientelism, and rent-seeking have been reinforcing a systemic form of corruption. It has not been uncommon to see convicted politicians acquitted and back to vying for government positions. While some have it easily by dancing their way back to office, others have to forge relations with oligarchic elites and local politicians for support.
Nathan reviewed cases of major corruption scandals in the Philippines–from the Offshore Leaks and the PDAF scam exposed in 2013, to perhaps the largest, by far, DPWH’s flood control scandal investigated in 2025. In this lecture, he will revisit these scandals and examine how corruption issues have waxed and waned across varying government efforts. As we enter 2026, the call remains: hold all involved accountable. The public still waits amidst promises to exempt no one. This time, would the implicated ‘big fishes’ of corruption finally be jailed?
To learn more about this topic, you can access the articles through this link: https://bit.ly/CyclesofCorruption-Articles