SONA 2026: Corruption, debt and the unfinished reform agenda

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s State of the Nation Address on July 27 will be delivered against the backdrop of a decade marked by corruption, fiscal mismanagement and widening inequality. Estimates suggest that P8.8 trillion was lost to corruption between 2016 and 2025. Beyond the financial leakage, the figure represents the opportunity cost of classrooms left