Baguio Mayor Benjamin Magalong maintained that his campaign to expose alleged corruption in flood control projects is not politically driven but a fight to secure the nation’s future, even as he continues to face threats to his life.
“We’re risking our life here. Sino ba maglalakas ngayon ang nagsasalita tungkol dito?” Magalong said in an interview with NewsWatch Plus on Tuesday, Sept. 2.
“Wala na akong ibang motive diyan. I’m willing even to sacrifice my life just to make sure that we give the future that our children really deserve.”
Magalong warned that persistent corruption could push the Philippines toward the same crisis that befell Venezuela, which he cited as once-rich but now plagued with hyperinflation and widespread poverty.
“Look what is happening in Venezuela now. So much hunger, so much poverty, hyperinflation. People are throwing away their money because it’s useless. There’s no future for our children. And that’s precisely my motive,” he said.
“At the end of the day, magko-collapse din yung ating ekonomiya, magko-collapse din yung ating bansa. Sayang lang lahat. At sino bang unang tatakas? Itong mga kurap na politiko dahil napakarami na nilang pera,” he added.
The Philippine National Police earlier placed him under “high” threat level during the election period, which Magalong believes remains in effect following his disclosures. He admitted concerns for his family’s safety, saying he has already briefed his wife and companions on what to do in case of an attack.
To critics accusing him of playing politics, Magalong was blunt:
“Sana makonsensya kayo. Wala na kayong iniisip na lahat kung hindi politics ng politics,” he said.
