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It’s exactly a week before Christmas and this will be my last newsletter for 2025, a rather turbulent year that was full of surprises and upheavals, you will agree. 

Before anything else, allow me to greet you all a meaningful Christmas. It can be serene and simple, not necessarily merry, but quiet and somehow consequential.

On Wednesday night, we had our Christmas party at the office with a simple buffet setup, a live family band care of one of our managers, our traditional special awards and recognitions, and the fun-est part: creative presentations from our newbies that showcased fresh talent in the newsroom. 

Former Rapplers came and reunited with colleagues — some of whom had been with us for five or 10 years, or even more (yes, they were given recognition awards). There were special awards too, including “Impactful Content of the Year,” and guess who won? It was the flood control series of stories that reporters and others in the team helped put together. 

Even the presentations by the newbies had an almost similar theme that cut across their grand and hilarious productions. We couldn’t help but think how appalling corruption has permeated the Filipino socio-economic, and even cultural, fabric such that anger over it hijacked even Christmas presentations. I bet we were not alone in this because after all, it’s hard to bracket in our consciousness this callousness on the part of corrupt politicians and their kin. 

A compilation of the flood control corruption stories is an indelible reminder that should be carried all the way to 2028, when we once again choose our leaders. Here are some of our investigative stories you ought not to forget:

• Lian Buan wrote about the now-resigned justice undersecretary Jojo Cadiz, a close associate of the President, whose college son is a beneficial owner of a construction company, JSJ Builders, linked to his father.
• Jairo Bolledo reported in September about top Davao flood control contractor Glenn Escandor and his ties to the Dutertes. 
• Here is Dwight de Leon’s story on congressman Edwin Gardiola, who represents party-list group Construction Workers Solidarity: Zaldy Co 2.0? Congressman Gardiola’s scheme to buy and sell DPWH projects
• Jairo also wrote about the construction firm Motiontrade owned by Senator Mark Villar’s uncle and brother of former senator Cynthia Villar. This shows how relatives can benefit from familial ties: Firm owned by Senator Mark Villar’s uncle bagged P390M in flood control projects 
• Way back in August, Patrick Cruz explained in a short video the link between Senator Chiz Escudero and a flood control contractor who was among his top donors in 2022.

Some of our readers have “complained” that our investigative stories are gated or now require either payment or membership in Rappler+. We appeal to their civic-mindedness to help support this kind of investigative journalism. A Rappler+ Lite membership costs only P249 a month, just a little over the price of a one-time frappuccino maybe. If one can spend for coffee, why can’t one be willing to pay for credible information that can have an impact on governance and civic life?

Last December 10, we had a briefing in the newsroom for our Rappler+ members who heard from four of our reporters — Lian, Jairo, Dwight, and Patrick — about how challenging putting together their reports has been. Is there a wishlist for them, to make their herculean task easier? Certainly.

More funding. We spend on Securities and Exchange Commission documents, do legwork, research, and interviews that entail costs. Investigative stories require manpower too and are far from cheap.

More transparency. Freedom of Information in this country is a farce. It’s selective. Statements of Assets, Liability, and Net Worth are redacted when they weren’t before. This makes the investigation into suspicious properties that could have been illegally acquired harder. Former ombudsman Samuel Martires even spearheaded restrictions on SALN access. Fortunately, this has been reversed by Ombudsman Boying Remulla.

More tips and information. Good governance is a shared responsibility. Enraged citizens have emailed us via [email protected] to share information they have right in their backyards or communities. We need solid information to speed up our digging. We are in this together.

2026 will be a fresh start and a continuation of still unfinished investigations. This much we can promise you: we will not stop doing what we do — inflict discomfort on those who deserve it. Like-minded partners ideally should partner with us and help see things through all the way to the courts and polling booths.

Together we can make a real difference. Have a good Christmas and here’s to a better 2026!

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– Rappler.com

Rappler Investigates is a bimonthly newsletter of our top picks delivered straight to your inbox every other Thursday. Visit rappler.com/newsletters to subscribe.