{"id":42158,"date":"2025-11-18T08:00:20","date_gmt":"2025-11-18T08:00:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/?p=42158"},"modified":"2025-11-18T08:00:20","modified_gmt":"2025-11-18T08:00:20","slug":"philippine-president-marcos-rejects-sisters-accusation-of-chronic-drug-usetraffic_sourcerss","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/2025\/11\/18\/philippine-president-marcos-rejects-sisters-accusation-of-chronic-drug-usetraffic_sourcerss\/","title":{"rendered":"Philippine President Marcos rejects sister\u2019s accusation of chronic drug use | Corruption News"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\" async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- Africa tv video display -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"3579572842\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\">\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"\">\n<p class=\"article__subhead\"><em>The accusations from his estranged sister come as the Philippine president faces a corruption scandal over flood-control projects.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div aria-live=\"polite\" aria-atomic=\"true\">\n<p data-start=\"329\" data-end=\"466\">Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr\u00a0has rejected accusations by his estranged sister, Senator Imee Marcos, that he has been a long-term drug user, at a time when the country is witnessing mass protests against corruption.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"468\" data-end=\"635\">On Monday, the senator alleged that her brother had developed a cocaine dependency that affected his governance, contributing to corruption and poor decision-making.<\/p>\n<section class=\"more-on\">\n<h2 class=\"more-on__heading\">Recommended Stories<!-- --> <\/h2>\n<p><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">list of 4 items<\/span><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">end of list<\/span><\/section>\n<p data-start=\"637\" data-end=\"787\">Communications Undersecretary Claire Castro, the president\u2019s spokesperson, dismissed the claims as baseless, describing them as recycled accusations that have long been disproved.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"789\" data-end=\"1026\">Speaking to a large crowd at a Manila park rally organised by a religious group, Senator Imee said her brother\u2019s drug use began during the presidency of their father, Ferdinand Marcos Sr \u2014 who ruled from 1965 to 1986 \u2014 and continues to this day.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_3584304\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-3584304\" style=\"width:770px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-arc-image-770 wp-image-3584304\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Philippine-President-Marcos-rejects-sisters-accusation-of-chronic-drug-use.jpg?w=640&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Rodrigo Duterte (R) speaks with Imee Marcos.\" fetchpriority=\"low\"\/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-3584304\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Then-President Rodrigo Duterte (R) speaks with Ilocos Norte Governor Imee Marcos during a meeting on Cebu Island, Philippines, on August 21, 2018 [Jay Rommel Labra\/EPA]<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p data-start=\"1028\" data-end=\"1316\">Without providing evidence, she claimed the president\u2019s addiction became the cause of a \u201cflood of corruption, the lack of direction and very wrong decisions, the absence of accountability and justice\u201d. She also alleged that the president\u2019s wife and children were involved in drug use.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1318\" data-end=\"1579\">Castro criticised the senator for not addressing former President Rodrigo Duterte, who has acknowledged past fentanyl use and, according to critics, may be linked to corruption along with his daughter, Vice President Sara Duterte. Both have denied wrongdoing.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1581\" data-end=\"1786\">When Marcos Jr was campaigning for the presidency in 2021, his spokesperson released reports from a private hospital and the national police laboratory showing he tested negative for cocaine and methamphetamine.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"allegations-amid-corruption-scandal\">Allegations amid corruption scandal<\/h2>\n<p data-start=\"1841\" data-end=\"2038\">Castro has labelled Imee\u2019s statements as a distraction from ongoing investigations into a corruption scandal involving flood control projects that may implicate some of her Senate allies.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"2040\" data-end=\"2285\">\u201cSen Imee, I hope you\u2019ll be a patriot and help in the investigation that your own brother has been doing and condemn all the corrupt,\u201d Castro said. \u201cDon\u2019t side with them, don\u2019t hide them. Let President Marcos work to stop all the corruption.\u201d<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"2287\" data-end=\"2596\">Marcos\u2019s administration is investigating alleged corruption linked to ghost flood-control projects that cost taxpayers billions of pesos. Officials are accused of pocketing kickbacks from contracts to construct thousands of flood defences, many of which were either made with substandard materials or never built.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"2598\" data-end=\"2908\">The Department of Finance estimates that the Philippine economy lost up to 118.5 billion pesos ($2bn) from 2023 to 2025 due to corruption in flood-control projects. The country\u2019s economic planning minister has said up to 70 percent of public flood-control funds may have been lost since the scandal surfaced.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"2910\" data-end=\"3193\">The crisis comes as the Philippines has faced more than 20 storms this year. Most recently, Typhoon Kalmaegi killed at least 269 in early November, followed days later by Typhoon Fung-wong, displacing 1.4 million people and killing 28.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"3242\" data-end=\"3562\">Tens of thousands of protesters gathered in Manila on Sunday, demanding accountability from authorities, including allies of Marcos. The three-day rally organised by the Iglesia ni Cristo (INC), or Church of Christ \u2013 a powerful Philippine religious group \u2013 drew hundreds of thousands of participants and disrupted schools, roads, and offices.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"3564\" data-end=\"3750\">Marcos has promised that officials involved in the scandal would face legal action by the end of the year. \u201cThey\u2019ll be jailed \u2013 there\u2019s no merry Christmas for them,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"3752\" data-end=\"4021\">The INC had endorsed the candidacies of Marcos and Sara Duterte in 2022. However, after a falling-out between Marcos and Sara Duterte, the INC has shifted its support towards Duterte, the vice president.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"4023\" data-end=\"4300\">Despite setting up a panel to investigate alleged corruption, no notable arrests have been made nearly 100 days into the inquiry. Marcos, whose father faced accusations of widespread corruption, framed the crackdown as part of a broader campaign for transparency and accountability.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"4302\" data-end=\"4460\">A recent poll from the social research institute Social Weather Stations, however, indicated that more than 80 percent of Metro Manila residents believe corruption has worsened under Marcos\u2019s administration.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\" async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- Africa tv video display -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"3579572842\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\">\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script><br \/>\n#Philippine #President #Marcos #rejects #sisters #accusation #chronic #drug #Corruption #News<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The accusations from his estranged sister come as the Philippine president faces a corruption scandal over flood-control projects. Philippine President&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":42159,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-42158","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mzansi"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42158","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=42158"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42158\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":42160,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42158\/revisions\/42160"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/42159"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=42158"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=42158"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=42158"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}