There’s no way to neatly wrap up a year in politics so tumultuous. Aside from the many legislative hearings that both exposed and left questions about the year’s scams and scandals, 2024 was a year of fights — fights between religious devotees and the police, fights over territory, fights for rights and justice, and even the fight between the president and vice president.
Though 2024 has ended, the conflicts and issues that surfaced throughout the year have not come to pass. And as the Philippines gears up for the midterm elections this year, questions and anxieties from the past year loom over the nation. Are we really POGO-free? Will Apollo Quiboloy and Alice Guo serve time? And is it really the end of the UniTeam?
12 Senate seats, all 317 House seats, and local government positions are up for election in 2025. What’s at stake? Whether or not families affected by the jeepney phaseout and Manila Bay oil spill will find economic relief depends on who’s in Congress. The Senate decides if Vice President Sara Duterte should be tried for impeachment. And local government units must follow through on President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s promises for a “Bagong Pilipinas.” These are only some of the concerns that will inform voters’ decisions on May 12, election day.
Here are the political moments that defined 2024, and the issues to keep in mind as we venture into the new year.
President Marcos Launches ‘Bagong Pilipinas’
On January 28, 2024, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. launched his campaign, “Bagong Pilipinas,” at the Quirino Grandstand in Manila in an event that reportedly cost at least P16 million. The campaign was intended to set the theme for his administration, which the Philippine News Agency says is “characterized by a principled, accountable, and dependable government reinforced by unified institutions of society.” It’s a callback to Kilusang Bagong Lipunan, or New Society — the movement and ideology that was central to the late Ferdinand Marcos Sr.’s rule from 1965 to 1986.
As a “kick-off” event, Bagong Pilipinas set the tone for the rest of the year in politics, brimming with spectacle. The concert featured singers Geneva Cruz and Ronnie Liang, girl group 4th Impact, rapper Andrew E., and rock band Aegis. Vice President Sara Duterte, Manila Mayor Honey Lacuna, and other Malacañang officials were in attendance. The event racked up a crowd of 400,000, according to Manila police.
Jeepney Phaseout and Transport Strikes
2024 saw the continuation of transport strikes in protest of the Department of Transportation’s (DOTr) Public Utility Vehicle Modernization Program, which required the phaseout of old jeepneys and utility vans. Since the program’s inception in 2017, public transport groups like Samahang Manibela Mananakay at Nagkaisang Terminal ng Transportasyon (Manibela) and Pagkakaisa ng mga Samahan ng Tsuper at Opereytor Nationwide (PISTON) have been protesting and holding transport strikes, demanding that the government increase the P200,000 subsidy to replace their old vehicles with new units, which cost P1.6 million to P2.4 million per unit.
The protests ceased in 2020 due to pandemic lockdown measures, and resumed in 2023. In January 2024, Piston and Manibela held a strike, urging the government to reinstate the franchises for unconsolidated public utility vehicles (PUVs). In response, President Marcos extended the consolidation deadline from December 31, 2023 to April 30, 2024. They also held strikes from April 29 to May 1, June 10 to 12, and September 23 and 24.
In July and August, members of United Negros Drivers and Operators Center-Piston (UNDOC-PISTON) and Bacolod Commuters, Operators, and Drivers Association-Manibela (BACOD-Manibela) mobilized in Bacolod City, where there are around 3,000 traditional jeepneys at risk of being apprehended.
The Marcos-Duterte Rivalry at a Boiling Point
On June 19, 2024, Vice President Sara Duterte left the presidential cabinet, resigning from her positions as the Department of Education secretary and vice chairperson of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC).
Duterte did not give an explanation for her resignation. But following the turnover of the Education secretary position to Senator Sonny Angara on July 18, 2024, Duterte told reporters that there were many reasons for her resignation, and that talking about it would require a sit-down. “Mayroon personal sa aming dalawa ni President Marcos, which stems from ‘yong napag-usapan namin bago ako tumakbong vice president. Mayroon sa trabaho, mayroon sa bayan. Mahaba siyang kwento,” she told reporters.
While Duterte’s separation from the Marcos cabinet marks a high point in their ongoing feud, it only precedes what feels like the most chaotic part of the rivalry’s timeline so far. In November 2024, Duterte lashed out at the president in an online press conference, yelling expletives, accusing First Lady Liza Araneta of corruption, and saying the House of Representatives’ investigation into Duterte’s confidential funds is motivated by Marcos cousin and House Speaker Martin Romualdez’s interest in the presidential seat for 2028.
VP Duterte vs Impeachment Raps
Following the online press conference, VP Duterte was hit with three impeachment raps in December 2024.
On December 2, civic organizations Magdalo, Mamamayang Liberal, Tindig Pilipinas, families of drug war victims, and Catholic Church leaders, filed the first impeachment complaint, with Leila de Lima at the helm and Akbayan Representative Perci Cendaña endorsing. The complaint cites betrayal of public trust, bribery, graft and corruption, and culpable violation of the Constitution as reasons for Duterte’s impeachment.
Two days later, 75 people filed a second complaint, seeking to impeach Duterte for betrayal of public trust over the Office of the Vice President’s (OVP) alleged misuse of confidential funds. Signatories include former lawmakers Teddy Casiño, Neri Colmenares, and Sarah Elago, while Makabayan bloc members ACT Teachers Representative France Castro, Gabriela Representative Arlene Brosas, and Kabataan Representative Raoul Manuel endorsed the complaint.
On December 19, a coalition of Catholic priests, civil society leaders, and lawyers filed the third impeachment complaint against Duterte, citing culpable violation of the Constitution, betrayal of public trust, plunder and malversation, bribery, graft, and corruption. Camarines Sur Representative Gabriel Bordado Jr. and Ang Asosasyon Sang Mangunguma Nga Bisaya-Owa Mangunguma (AAMBIS-Owa) Representative Lex Colada endorsed the complaint.
Alice Guo Becomes the Face of POGOs
In 2024, Alice Guo was everywhere: the news, social media, and Indonesia. The former mayor of Bamban, Tarlac, found herself in the middle of the government’s investigation into Philippine offshore gaming operators (POGOs) when, in May 2024, senators grilled her in a hearing regarding the 10-hectare POGO complex in her municipality and her involvement in its operations.
As the Senate’s inquiry continued throughout the year, Guo failed to answer questions about her upbringing — citizenship, family, birthplace, and school — until she stopped showing up at hearings altogether. Amid allegations that she was a Chinese spy, Guo fled to Malaysia in July, then Singapore, and then Indonesia, where she was arrested in September.
She remains in the Pasig City Jail, where she awaits trial for her alleged involvement with the Bamban-based POGO firm Hongsheng Gaming Technology Inc., where authorities allegedly discovered 800 victims of human trafficking.
Marcos Imposes Ban on POGOs
Amid the Senate probe into POGOs, Marcos dropped a bombshell announcement in his July 2024 State of the Nation Address (SONA). “Effective today, all POGOs are banned,” he declared to a cheering audience at the Batasang Pambansa Complex.
He followed this in November by issuing Executive Order No. 74, banning illegal and licensed POGOs. Senator Risa Hontiveros criticized the executive order, citing a lack of clarity. “While I laud the aims of the Executive Order, at nagpapa-salamat din para sa reintegration program para sa mga displaced workers, may mga bagay pa rin sa EO na hindi malinaw.” While offshore gaming operations are banned in the country, the executive order does not address the business process outsourcing firms (BPOs) that provide services to POGOs.
The Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) claims that all POGO licenses have been canceled and operations closed in December, but they also expect smaller, unlicensed POGO firms to mount guerilla operations in the new year following the December 31 shutdown deadline.
Clashes in the Spratlys
2024 also saw a series of bump-ins with the China Coast Guard in the West Philippine Sea, which China contests to be part of its territory. On a resupply mission in March 2024, Philippine Coast Guard vessel BRP Sindangan figured in a collision with a China Coast Guard vessel in Ayungin Shoal. Four were injured after two other China Coast Guard vessels fired water cannons at another Filipino resupply vessel.
In the same month, three Philippine Navy personnel were injured after China Coast Guard fired water cannons at the civilian vessel, named Unaizah May 4, in another Ayungin Shoal resupply mission. On the same day, a Chinese Navy helicopter hovered over a team of Filipino scientists who were conducting a marine resources assessment in Pag-asa Island. Other Filipino vessels have had runs-in with the China Coast Guard throughout the year in other parts of the Spratly Islands, like Scarborough Shoal and Sabina Shoal.
Currently, only the BRP Sierra Madre — a rusty, World War II-era landing ship — stands in Ayungin Shoal as the country’s reinforcement of its claim over the disputed Spratlys.
In his SONA, Marcos said that the Philippines “cannot yield… cannot waiver” in its assertion of its territorial sovereignty, and will “find ways to de-escalate tensions in contested areas… without compromising our position and our principles.”
Manila Bay Oil Spill
Closer to land, a series of oil spills in July plagued the Manila Bay. It started on July 25, with oil tanker MT Terra Nova capsizing off the coast of Limay, Bataan, spilling oil into the bay. One crew member died in the incident. Two days later, the MTKR Jason Bradley ship, carrying diesel cargo, sank near Mariveles. On the 31st, authorities found MV Mirola 1 abandoned and leaking oil off the coast of Mariveles.
The province of Bataan, Cavite, municipalities Kawit, Noveleta, Rosario, Tanza, Naic, Maragondon, and Ternate, and Bacoor City declared states of calamity due to the oil spill, which covered an area of 93.74 square kilometers, according to the Philippine Space Agency.
The Office of Civil Defense (OCD) said that 352,179 people from Cavite’s coastal barangays were affected by the oil spill, which rendered the coastal areas unsuitable for fishing. The OCD estimated that P17.9 million in income was lost each day for 22 days.
Apollo Quiboloy on the Run
In 2024, controversy surrounding the church the Kingdom of Jesus Christ (KOJC) and its founder Apollo Quiboloy continued to unfold, with the pastor and “Appointed Son of God” evading arrest for months.
After the Department of Justice ordered the filing of child abuse and human trafficking cases against Quiboloy and his associates, the Davao Regional Trial Court (RTC) issued a warrant for Quiboloy’s arrest, while the Pasig City Court charged him with human trafficking and the Senate ordered his arrest for “unduly refusing to appear” during hearings regarding the allegations against KOJC. In May, with Quiboloy still nowhere to be found, the Supreme Court allowed the transfer of Quiboloy’s cases from the Davao RTC to the Quezon City Court.
The Philippine National Police and KOJC members had a standoff for months in Davao City, beginning in June and coming to a head in August with followers rioting during the PNP’s takeover of the KOJC compound in its search for Quiboloy.
On September 8, former Interior Secretary Benhur Abalos announced on Facebook that Quiboloy was arrested, saying, “Nahuli na po si Apollo Quiboloy.” However, Ferdinand Topacio, Quiboloy’s lawyer, said that he had voluntarily surrendered to the Intelligence Service of the Armed Forces (ISAFP).
While awaiting trial in the Pasig City jail, Quiboloy filed his certificate of candidacy and is currently running for senator in the upcoming midterm elections.
PDAF Scam Acquittals
In 2013, several members of the legislature were accused to be involved in the misuse of their Priority Development Assistance Fund, also called PDAF or, more popularly, pork barrel. At its center was businesswoman Janet Lim-Napoles, to whom around P10 billion in government funds was diverted. Philippine Daily Inquirer’s initial report of the scam pointed to five senators and 23 House representatives as participants, including Senators Bong Revilla, Jinggoy Estrada and former Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile.
In 2017, Estrada was released on bail. In 2021, the Sandiganbayan, the special court that has jurisdiction over graft and corruption cases, acquitted Revilla of plunder related to the scam. In January 2024, Estrada was also acquitted of plunder in relation to the scam, but still found guilty of one count of direct bribery and two counts of indirect bribery. In August, the court reversed its decision on the bribery convictions.
In October, the Sandiganbayan acquitted Napoles, Enrile, and his former chief of staff Atty. Jessica Reyes, citing “the prosecution’s failure to prove their guilt beyond reasonable doubt,” of their P172.83 million plunder case.
“This is vindication for all of us,” Enrile told reporters after the promulgation of the case. He added, “I hope the people who filed those cases against us will examine their conscience.”
Napoles remains incarcerated for two other plunder convictions.
Mary Jane Veloso Comes Home
After spending 14 years on death row in Indonesia, overseas Filipino worker Mary Jane Veloso was flown back to the Philippines in a repatriation deal that saved Veloso from execution.
In 2010, Maria Kristina Sergio, a childhood friend, recruited Veloso to work as a domestic helper in Malaysia. When she got there, Sergio told her that the job was no longer available, but a similar opportunity awaited in Indonesia. Having packed only a few clothes, Veloso went shopping with Sergio, who also allegedly gave her the suitcase that airport security in Indonesia found to have heroin concealed in the inner linings. With no legal counsel and no interpreter to help Veloso after her arrest, she was given the death sentence.
In April 2015, with Veloso’s execution nearing, Sergio surrendered to police in Nueva Ecija. Hours before the scheduled execution, late former President Benigno Aquino III called Indonesian foreign minister Retno Marsudi on a burner phone to appeal for clemency, explaining that Veloso’s testimony would be important in the cases of illegal recruiting, estafa, and human trafficking filed against Sergio. In 2020, Sergio was found guilty and sentenced to life imprisonment for illegal recruiting in a case separate from Veloso’s.
In November 2024, the Indonesian government announced plans to return “high-profile” foreign prisoners, including Veloso, to their home countries by the end of the year. Senior Minister Yusril Ihza Mahendra said, “We are transferring them to their countries so they can serve their sentence there, but if the countries want to give amnesty, we respect it. It’s their right.”
With Veloso’s return to the Philippines, where the death penalty was abolished in 2006, her death sentence was automatically commuted to life imprisonment. She is currently in the Correctional Institution for Women in Mandaluyong, waiting as the DOJ puts her full clemency into consideration.
