Thousands of people in the Philippines took to the streets on Sunday to protest alleged corruption over bogus or substandard flood control projects.

Organizers estimated the turnout at around 130,000 people in the capital city of Manila alone, where protesters gathered at Luneta Park and the EDSA People Power Monument, which commemorates the mass uprising that ousted the father of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. in 1986.

Multiple politicians were in attendance at the rallies, some of which were even supported by the powerful Catholic Church.

"Our purpose is not to destabilize but to strengthen our democracy," said Cardinal Pablo Virgilio David, the head of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines.

Authorities said they arrested 17 people who allegedly threw rocks at riot police and set fire to a barricade truck near the presidential palace.

Why are Filipinos protesting?

A scandal has emerged in the Philippines after billions of dollars worth of flood-control projects were revealed to be either substandard or nonexistent, months after the country was ravaged by deadly monsoons.

The Department of Finance has estimated the Philippine economy lost up to 118.5 billion pesos ($2 billion, €1.75 billion) from 2023 to 2025 due to corruption in flood control projects, while Greenpeace has suggested the number is actually closer to $18 billion.

Public outrage has grown in recent weeks after Ferdinand Marcos Jr. highlighted the scandal in a state of the nation address in July.

In September, the owners of a construction firm accused nearly 30 lawmakers and Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) officials of taking cash payments.

Marcos said he did not blame the public "one bit" for protesting on Sunday but urged them to remain peaceful. 

Edited by: Dmytro Hubenko