Kleptopirosis: The Disease That Kills The Filipino People

by Seneca Moraleda-Puguan

One of our biggest apprehensions about returning home to the Philippines is the typhoon season and the flooding that inevitably follows.

As we search for a temporary home in Manila while my husband serves as a Balik-Scientist at the University of the Philippines-Diliman, one crucial factor we’re considering is whether the area is flood-prone or flood-free.

Every year, as rainfall grows more intense and frequent, many areas in Metro Manila are submerged in floodwaters. These floods do more than disrupt daily life; they also pose serious health risks.

A major concern is leptospirosis, a potentially deadly bacterial infection caused by Leptospira, found in contaminated water and soil.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, exposure can occur simply by walking through floodwaters. In the Philippines, over 2,000 cases were recorded just between June and August. This is the harsh reality that countless Filipinos face during typhoon season.

In the past few weeks since our return, we’ve witnessed firsthand the daily struggles of our fellow Filipinos. My husband and I can’t help but feel frustrated and disheartened by how things remain stagnant, how mediocrity has somehow become acceptable. The common mindset of “Ganyan talaga” or “Okay na ’yan” has numbed us to injustice.

Filipinos work tirelessly. They pay taxes, they persevere. Yet they are made to settle for less.

In countries where we’ve lived, like Switzerland and South Korea, taxes may be high, but the returns are visible and tangible: excellent infrastructure, efficient public transportation, responsive services. In contrast, here at home, we are confronted with substandard projects and systemic neglect.

But here’s what’s even more heartbreaking: it’s not just floods or leptospirosis that kill. It’s kleptospirosis.

The term kleptospirosis, coined by health reform advocate Dr. Tony Leachon, is a combination of leptospirosis and kleptomania. It refers to the rampant theft of funds meant for flood control and public welfare.

In a segment titled “Katakot-Takot na Kurakot” on Jessica Soho’s “Kapuso Mo, Jessica Soho” show, it was revealed that billions allocated for flood control projects end up in the pockets of a corrupt few.

Baguio City Mayor Benjamin Magalong exposed how construction materials are grossly overpriced, with much of the budget being siphoned off. This is not just negligence. This is systemic corruption.

While millions of Filipinos wade through waist-deep waters and face disease under the guise of “resilience,” a privileged few live in comfort financed by taxpayers’ money.

The Philippines is not a poor country, after all. We are a plundered one. It’s infuriating. It’s devastating. And it is unacceptable.

Corruption in agencies like the Department of Public Works and Highways is no longer a secret. But now that it’s being openly discussed and exposed, there is hope.

There must be accountability. The Filipino people deserve better than greedy, self-serving politicians who have long taken advantage of them. Enough is enough.

I want to share a powerful post by Peso Weekly that deeply resonated with me – words I hope will convict the corrupt and awaken the apathetic:

“Every payday, you show up, even if the streets look like rivers.
You don’t have the luxury to stay at home. No work = no salary. No salary = no food on the table.
So you wade through floods. You risk leptospirosis, ruined shoes, broken phones. All for one thing: to keep earning.

But here’s the twist.
The same salary you fought for? It gets taxed.
And those taxes are supposed to fix the flooding.
Except they don’t.
Billions are poured into ‘flood control projects.’
Yet every rainy season, many areas become Waterworld.

Meanwhile, the politicians?
They’re not in the floods.
They’re in their gated homes, dry and safe- watching your struggle like it’s tonight’s primetime news.

Here’s the irony: You risk your life to work, so you can pay taxes that get stolen by the very people who should be protecting you.

Filipinos are not resilient. We’re held hostage by corruption.
And until accountability exists, every flood will drown us twice – once in water, and once in betrayal.”

To the corrupt officials and their families and to those who live lavishly while remaining indifferent to the pain and suffering of the people they were elected to serve: shame on you.

Lord, have mercy on the Filipino people. May justice finally prevail. And may You heal our land.