Edu Manzano slams contractors behind anomalous flood control projects—here’s why his posts are trending
Edu Manzano is making the rounds on social media as he joined internet users in expressing their dismay over the alleged corruption in flood control projects with satirical content.
The corruption issue involving billions of pesos has been a hot topic in the news and social media for weeks now. Some users, including celebrities and personalities, even turned their attention to the children of politicians and major contractors, whom they call "nepo babies," for flaunting their lavish lifestyles and frequent travels.
Manzano opted to call them out via satirical content with AI-generated photos of him, which trended online in no time.
He first posted a photo of himself dressed as an engineer visiting construction sites with a sign that read "Funds at work."
"Relax, guys. Ako na bahala... sa road to forever. Bill, Bill, Bill," Manzano captioned his Aug. 28 post with the hashtags #20%semento80%kupit, #EngineerEdu, and #newcareerpath.
In another post, he is seen inside a car with a luxurious interior. "Second day at work… pero abot na hanggang second life ang budget ko," he quipped. He added the hashtags #dreamsdocometrue, #sumaksesdin, and #roadtobulsa.
"Know your priorities. Hermès muna bago semento," he commented.
He returned to the construction site in his third AI-generated post, where he is seen wearing a tux while holding an umbrella. A sign that read "Ghost Bridge under construction" can also be spotted in the background.
In his caption, he jokingly gave an "update" on the project, saying the umbrella and helmet are ready, but the infrastructure is still a no-go.
"Keep safe, umuulan na naman," he wrote.
"Bruh, payong is the new investment! Kung wala kang Rolls Royce payong, wala kang financial stability," he added in the comments section of his post.
The caption appears to reference Sarah Discaya's remark in her interview on Julius Babao's vlog, where she said she bought a Rolls-Royce Cullinan because of the umbrella that came with it. (Sarah and her husband Curlee Discaya are linked to big-time construction firms involved in flood control projects.)
The Bureau of Customs said it would “immediately look into” the Discayas' imported luxury cars. The Bureau of Internal Revenue said it also began a probe into contractors linked to the DPWH flood control projects.)
On Aug. 30, he shared another AI-generated photo of himself, this time lounging inside a luxurious hotel room while showing off his Ladurée pastries as well as his "new purchases" from luxury brands like Chanel, Gucci, and Louis Vuitton. He's also seen holding a "Rolls-Royce payong."
"Good morning, mga taxpayers! Saturday morning, no site visit, no stress. Just Ladurée, a Rolls-Royce payong, and taxpayer money brewed to perfection," he captioned the photo with the hashtags #CroissantOverConstruction and #MorningFundedByTheNation.
In a separate post, he joked, "Mga taxpayers, thanks sa kape. Keep grinding para sa single-origin beans ko. Sya nga pala, ilo-launch ko na ang sikreto sa generational wealth. Hindi crypto, hindi networking, just be like me."
His posts have garnered thousands of reactions both on Instagram and Facebook, with most of them being "Haha" reactions.
Massive flooding in July
The issue in the government's flood control projects began in July as the rains triggered massive flooding in the metro.
Economist JC Punongbayan, in a Facebook post, questioned why flooding persists despite having billions of pesos in flood control allocations over the years.
Using data from the Department of Budget and Management, he shared a graph showing the steadily increasing flood control allocations: P141.6 billion in 2021, P209.9 billion in 2022, P282.5 billion in 2023, and P351.3 billion in 2024. This year’s allocation stands at P349.4 billion and, despite being less than the previous year’s allocation, Punongbayan noted it’s still roughly a third of the national infrastructure budget.
“Bakit grabe pa rin ang baha?” he asked. “Bakit parang hindi ramdam ang pagbuhos ng budget sa flood control systems?”
At the time, Lacson told dzBB that since 2011, about P1 trillion allocated for flood control projects may have been lost to corruption.
President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr., in his fourth State of the Nation Address, called out government officials involved in the would-be corruption in flood control projects.
Marcos ordered the DPWH to "immediately submit" to him the list of flood control projects from every region that were started and completed in the last three years. He said a project monitoring committee will evaluate this list to determine the failures, as well as the unfinished and ghost projects.
Soon after, he launched the "Sumbong sa Pangulo" website, where the public can track and report flood control projects. He also published a list of 15 contractors that exclusively bagged 20% of all flood control projects worth P100 billion in the last three years.
