Cardinal Pablo Virgilio David has spoken out against the growing trend of politicians’ children showcasing extravagant wealth on social media, calling it an insult to the millions of Filipinos struggling to make ends meet.
In his homily on Saturday, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines president expressed outrage over a viral post showing a group spending ₱760,000 on a single dinner for four people. He stressed that such an amount is more than what an ordinary worker could ever hope to earn in three years. “It is obscene when the children of politicians post on social media a dinner bill amounting to ₱760,000 for just four people—an amount that even a worker cannot earn in three years,” David said.
The prelate went further, exposing the stark contrast between how society treats the poor versus the powerful. “It is obscene when a poor father of six is arrested and jailed for allegedly tossing coins in a street-side game of ‘cara y cruz,’ while no one is arrested, jailed, or charged for squandering billions of pesos of public funds on ghost flood-control projects,” he added.
His remarks echo the wave of public anger directed at the so-called “nepo babies” of contractors and politicians tied to the controversial multibillion-peso flood control projects. Many of these individuals have been flaunting luxury cars, designer fashion, and lavish trips online, prompting widespread condemnation from netizens and public figures alike.
David also warned of a deeper social ill—the dangerous normalization of such behavior. “Even worse, the people do not recoil in disgust but clap, laugh, and cheer, entertained by the masked executioners,” he said, lamenting the public’s silence and even amusement in the face of glaring injustice.
The Cardinal’s rebuke comes at a time when investigations into the flood control scandal have revealed irregularities, including ghost projects and questionable contractor dealings.
