THE PROTECTOR BECOMES THE PREDATOR

THE PROTECTOR BECOMES THE PREDATOR

I recently attended a lecture by Filipino sociologist Dr. Clemen C. Aquino and I came away with a metaphor that jolted me: bantay salakay — “guard turned attacker”, the protector turned predator. In her discussion, Dr. Aquino applied it to the unfolding controversy in the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) flood-control projects, where the very officials we expect to shield public funds may have become the ones preying upon them.

At first glance, many Filipinos already know what corruption is. But Dr. Aquino argued that when one imagines a protector — the guard, the public servant entrusted with oversight and honesty — morphing into a predator — a thief in uniform, the betrayal sinks deeper. She asked: “What happens when the guard steals what he is supposed to guard?” The image is powerful — it breaks the fog of jargon and positions the problem in human terms.

I couldn’t agree more. In simpler terms: a protector is like a guard standing watch. A predator is a thief. So when the guard becomes the thief, the society suffers the double harm of systems betrayed and trust eroded. The typical understanding of graft doesn’t always capture the depth of that betrayal. But framing it as bantay salakay gives the public a clearer picture.

Consider recent developments in the DPWH’s flood-control programmes. A state audit found “ghost” projects—paid for but not built—in the province of Bulacan. Reports say a single contractor might have bagged up to ₱9 billion worth of contracts in Bulacan alone, with allegations of legislators and officials demanding 10-25 % kick-backs. 

According to the environmental group Greenpeace Philippines, possibly ₱1.089 trillion of climate-tagged funds are vulnerable to corruption, with the DPWH holding the bulk of those flood-control allocations. 

These are more than isolated bad apples. As Senator Panfilo Lacson said: parts of the DPWH have “become a playground” for collusion and profiteering. So the safeguard – the protector – apparently paves the way for predation.

My thoughts & questions

It’s easy to feel anger. Why did the public funds, meant for our flood-prone communities, end up lining pockets instead? More importantly: how do we stop this cycle of “protector becomes predator” from repeating?

Some suggestions:

1. Transparency and public visibility: If a flood-control project is approved, locals should be able to see it being built. Satellite imagery and geo-tagging already revealed ghost projects. Why not make ongoing progress visible in real time?
   
   

2. Independent oversight: Trusting the protector to police himself rarely works. The government has set up an Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) to investigate infrastructure corruption. This could help break the cycle of internal cover-ups.
   
   

3. Limit concentration of contracts: When only 15 contractors handled 20% of flood-control funds, we see an oligopoly of favoured firms. That raises red flags for collusion. Should contracting be spread more widely?
   
   

4. Accountability beyond resignation: Freezing assets is a start. For example, the DPWH has asked the Anti‑Money Laundering Council to freeze assets of implicated contractors and officials. But will there be full legal and criminal consequences?
   
   

5. Civic engagement: Ordinary citizens need to act as co-guardians. If you see “something wrong”, report it. If a wall near a river looks untouched months after being “completed”, raise your voice.
   
   

6. Culture shift: We must change the narrative that public office equals private enrichment. The metaphor of protector/predator helps. We deserve protectors, not predators.
   
   

One suggestion I’d like to float: Let’s propose a “community oversight board” for major projects in localities prone to disaster (floods, landslides). Local residents, engineers, journalists, and civil-society reps could form a small committee that visits sites, checks progress, and publishes quarterly plain-language updates. That way, we add more visible guards — but we make sure they are the public, not insiders who may eventually turn predator.

Because what if we simply install more guards, but the new guards also become thieves? Without transparency, oversight and citizen participation, the cycle continues. And that brings us back to the question Dr. Aquino posed: how do we make sure these predatory behaviours won’t happen again?

I leave you with the image that stuck with me: the guard who turns into the thief. When we equip someone with trust and duty, and they betray it — the damage is doubled. Not only did we lose resources, we lost a guardian. And in a country vulnerable to floods, storms and climate change, both the infrastructure and the trust matter.

I invite you: what ideas can you imagine to guard our guard-rails? How can we make sure that our protectors truly protect — and never prey? Let’s talk, let’s act.

Ramon Ike V. Seneres, www.facebook.com/ike.seneres

iseneres@yahoo.com, senseneres.blogspot.com 03-22-2026