Crissa Tolentino has long been resigned to floods as a way of life. The 36-year-old public school teacher takes a paddle boat through the inundated streets nearly every day. It's the only way to travel from her home in the suburbs to the heart of Apalit, a low-lying town near the Philippine capital Manila.
The boat takes her to work, and to the clinic where she is being treated for cancer. She says she only sees dry streets for about two months in the year.
But this year she is very angry.
An unusually fierce monsoon has derailed daily life more than ever in the South East Asian nation, and sparked anger and allegations about corruption in flood control projects.
The rains have stranded millions mid-commute, left cars floating in streets that have turned into rivers and caused outbreaks of leptospirosis, a liver ailment that spreads through the excrement of sewer rats.
I feel betrayed, Ms Tolentino says. I work hard, I don't spend too much and taxes are deducted from my salary every month. Then I learn that billions in our taxes are being enjoyed by corrupt politicians.
It's a charge that is resonating across the Philippines, where people are asking why the government cannot tame the floods with the billions of pesos it pours into infrastructure like roads, bridges and embankments.
Their anger is palpable on TikTok, Facebook and X, where they are venting against lawmakers and construction tycoons who they allege win contracts for ghost projects that never materialise.
President Ferdinand Bongbong Marcos Jr himself acknowledged this as a continuing challenge on a visit to inspect a flood control dam that he then found did not exist. The economic planning minister later said corruption had claimed 70% of public funds allotted for flood control.
Outraged Filipinos have been stitching together AI videos of lawmakers as crocodiles, a symbol of greed. A lot of the ire is also aimed at nepo babies, the children of wealthy politicians or contractors, whose extravagant lives are all over social media.
The Filipino internet has also taken aim at the children of politicians and contractors suspected of misusing funds, branding them with the hashtag nepo babies. Many are young women whose designer-clad jet-setting lifestyle on social media has drawn sarcastic comments about how they should thank taxpayers for funding their shopping and travel.
As they demand accountability, protests are being organized, with demonstrators calling for transparency and integrity in the management of flood relief funds.
More than a decade ago - in 2013 - lawmakers were accused of pocketing billions from their discretionary budgets for ghost projects. Now, as Filipinos call for reforms, Congresswoman Leila de Lima expresses concern that the existing corruption scandal could be even larger than before.
The recent flooding has been a grim reminder of the ongoing issues faced by many as a result of poor governance and the neglect of vital infrastructure, driving citizens to demand justice and accountability.
