Are Long-Standing Systems Ready for a Generation Demanding More?
Issue 13 — Key Developments Across the Philippines, Singapore, and Vietnam
Editor’s Note
by Nabil Haskanbancha, in Bangkok
Across Manila, Hanoi, and Singapore, recent events point to a common theme: the ongoing negotiation between long-standing institutions and citizens seeking greater responsiveness. In the Philippines, outrage over “nepo babies” flaunting privilege during floods has pushed democratic accountability onto TikTok and Reddit. Vietnam is attempting to redraw its very map of governance, consolidating provinces to chase efficiency but risking friction if local voices are sidelined. And Singapore, despite its reputation for order, is battling billions lost to scams by embedding new safeguards and testing models of regional cooperation.
Each case is distinct, yet they converge on a larger truth: Southeast Asia’s institutions must adapt quickly to keep pace with digital disruption, social demands, and economic ambition. Perhaps the deeper challenge is this: will genuine reform come from the top down, or will it ultimately be demanded from the ground up?
The Philippines 🇵🇭
From Ghost Projects to Private Jets—The Scandal Exposing a Nation’s Elites
by Eduardo G. Fajermo Jr., in Angeles City
In the Philippines, floodwaters are rising, and so is public anger. What began as a bureaucratic investigation into allegedly botched flood-control projects has ballooned into a national reckoning with corruption, privilege, and democratic accountability. At the heart of the outrage? A new face of old politics: the “nepo baby.”
The Philippine Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) has come under scrutiny for misallocated funds, ghost projects, and construction failures across multiple flood-control programs. A Commission on Audit (COA) report revealed that only 15 of 2,409 accredited firms were awarded nearly ₱100 billion worth of contracts between 2022 and 2025, raising red flags about fairness and favoritism. Some projects were found uncoordinated with local governments; others collapsed shortly after completion. These issues have now drawn the attention of multiple institutions: the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee, Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), Department of Justice (DOJ), and the Office of the Ombudsman.
Yet the public outrage only truly reached a boiling point when social media users turned their attention to the children of the contractors involved. Dubbed “nepo babies” (short for nepotism babies), these influencers became lightning rods for criticism not for committing crimes, but for flaunting extraordinary wealth on social media, just as revelations of corruption surfaced.
Prominent among them is Claudine Co, daughter of Christopher “Kito” Co of Hi-Tone Construction, whose firm is linked to billions in flood-control contracts. Her videos showcasing private jet rides, luxury shopping, and Paris apartment-hunting went viral for all the wrong reasons. Jammy Cruz and Lemuel Lubiano, children of other well-placed contractors–were pilloried online for what netizens called “tax-funded lifestyles.” A now-deleted TikTok Live by Gela Alonte, daughter of Biñan Mayor Angelo Alonte, stoked further backlash when she laughed off a viewer’s question about political dynasties, even as her city dealt with ongoing floods.
A Reddit page titled lifestylecheckPH, launched just days after these revelations, quickly amassed thousands of followers compiling receipts: screenshots, luxury hauls, and lavish parties. The message was clear: while millions wade through floodwaters, some children of the political-business elite are cruising through life, seemingly untouched by consequence.
But beyond outrage, this moment signals something deeper. Citizens are demanding more than apologies or social media deactivations. They are calling for structural reform: transparency in contracting, stronger anti-dynasty laws, and a public service ethos grounded in humility and accountability.
In a region where democratic institutions often coexist with patronage networks, this scandal offers both warning and hope. Southeast Asian democracies frequently suffer from performative governance and elite capture. Yet what’s happening now in the Philippines (public shaming, Senate hearings, and grassroots digital activism) reveals that the soul of democracy is not dead. It’s mobilizing in unexpected corners of the internet, driven by a citizenry tired of being fooled.
The Philippines’ flood scandal is not just about infrastructure or Instagram. It’s about whose voices matter in a democracy and how systems built on privilege can crumble, not just under rain, but under scrutiny.
Eduardo is a faculty member at Holy Angel University, where he teaches courses on Philippine history and contemporary global issues. He is currently pursuing a Master’s degree in Political Science at the University of Santo Tomas, with a research focus on disaster governance, environmental politics, and the urban poor in the Philippines.
Vietnam 🇻🇳
Redrawing the Nation: Vietnam’s Bold Gamble on Efficiency and Growth
by Hang Nguyen, in Ho Chi Minh City
In July 2025, Vietnam conducted a historical administrative overhaul, streamlining its former four-tier system into a three-tier government structure (two-tier local administration), guided by Resolution No.60-NQ/TW and Decision No. 759/QD-TTg. The elimination of the district-level agencies reduced 63 provincial units down to 34 and 10035 commune units to 3321 with the aim of improving efficiency in administrative organization.
General Secretary To Lam described the restructuring as ‘redrawing the nation,’ framing this institutional reform as a strategic directive for long-term sustainable development. Two prominent objectives can be inferred from this transformation: strengthening policy enforcement and creating broader economic zones.
The previous system centralized control at the cost of delays and high expenses, leading to an overlapping bureaucracy and redundant responsibilities. Prolonged processing time caused by multiple layers of clearance and complicated procedures are now set to be removed. Regional coordination and planning are expected to become more coherent, allowing the government to exert a more proactive influence at the local level. Simultaneously, the merger of multiple regions–their local economies, and populations–promises more opportunities and resources to transform into urbanized economic hubs. Ho Chi Minh City will now incorporate Binh Duong, an industrial province, and Ba Ria–Vung Tau, an industrial-tourism province. This merger strengthens the city’s capacity to rival other economic powerhouses in the region, enhancing national stature while attracting foreign investment.
However, such significant transformation does not come without concerns in implementation. State President Luong Cuong reaffirmed the importance of ensuring that the newly established communes and wards operate and coordinate effectively from the outset. He warned against any delays and disruptions to infrastructure, social services, and business, especially with mergers between regions with economic and geographical disparities. The lack of meticulous planning during the early integration phase could stall reform progress, making it imperative for local officials to uphold integrity in resource allocation and ensure equitable development.
Citizens and businesses are expected to face initial inconveniences from the structural reform. Many individuals will need to update their citizen identification cards (CCCD), land-use rights certificates (Sổ đỏ), and other government documents. Nguyen Tien Thang, Deputy General Secretary of the Vietnam Private Business Association (VPBA), noted the challenges businesses face due to changes in tax codes and business licensing.
Vietnam’s envision for long-term sustainable development is not only a national strategy but also a regional one. Narrowing development gaps between subregions, and ultimately among ASEAN member states, is an objective outlined in the Initiative for ASEAN Integration (IAI) Work Plan IV (2021–2025). The framework aims to reduce disparities between urban and rural areas by encouraging strengthening institutional capacity, coordinating human resources, and enhancing infrastructure connectivity. With effective implementation, this administrative reform will better position Vietnam to align with ASEAN regional agendas, such as the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) Blueprint 2025. The AEC set out certain goals including: (i) a highly integrated and cohesive economy; (ii) a resilient, inclusive, people-oriented, and people-centred community–all of which are reflected in this administrative reform.
Hang is a young researcher with academic experience in Vietnam and the United States. She has previously worked in public relations at the U.S. Consulate General in Ho Chi Minh City and the YSEALI Academy. Her research focuses on ASEAN centrality in the evolving Asia-Pacific landscape, with particular attention to Vietnam’s approach to trade, regional cooperation, and political economy in the face of external power dynamics and global volatility.
Singapore 🇸🇬
Scams Without Borders in Singapore’s Fight Against Fraud
by Ryan
Singapore ended 2024 with a sobering milestone: at least SGD$1.1 billion lost to scams, the highest annual tally on record, bringing total losses since 2019 to more than S$3.4 billion. Police also received a record 51,501 scam reports that year. The surge reflects both the scale of digitalization and the sophistication of cross-border syndicates that target consumers through social media, messaging apps, and e-commerce platforms.
The Singapore government’s 2024 Annual Scams and Cybercrime Brief underscores how a small number of very large cases drove the spike in losses, even as the median loss per case fell to SGD$1,389. Investment scams accounted for the largest share of losses (about SGD$320.7 million), while e-commerce scams produced the most cases. Messaging apps, including WhatsApp and Telegram, were the most common contact channels, and Meta platforms remained over-represented in scam outreach. Notably, self-effected transfers–where victims were deceived into authorizing payments themselves–comprised more than 80% of reported cases.
Early 2025 data suggest the threat remains elevated. In the first half of the year, victims in Singapore lost roughly SDG$456 million across nearly 20,000 cases, with government-official impersonation and phishing scams rising sharply. While case volumes dipped modestly, the value at risk remained significant.
Policy responses are becoming more systemic. The Shared Responsibility Framework (SRF) took effect on December 16, 2024, imposing specific anti-phishing duties on banks and telcos and allocating liability if duties are breached. Complementary measures include IMDA’s multi-layered call and SMS defenses, which blocked 117 million calls and 50 million SMSes blocked in 2024, and intensified app-blocking through the new Ministry of Digital Development and Information (MDDI). Parliament also empowered police to issue restriction orders swiftly to freeze at-risk accounts, adding a last-resort when victims are mid-transfer.
For ASEAN, Singapore’s approach serves as a testbed for region-wide coordination. Scam operations are transnational, often spanning call centers, money mules, and crypto off-ramps across borders. Singapore’s joint operations with regional partners, coupled with data-sharing and platform accountability, point to an emerging model: embed friction at points of payment and communication, raise platform obligations, and accelerate cross-border enforcement. As crypto’s share of losses grows and generative-AI tools lower the cost of social engineering, the next frontier will hinge on regional standards for identity verification, faster asset-freeze protocols across jurisdictions, and clearer duties for platforms that intermediate user outreach.
Ryan is a final-year finance student at the Singapore University of Social Sciences (SUSS) with experience across venture capital, venture debt, and business development. He also holds a diploma in Law and Management from Temasek Polytechnic. His interests lie in how emerging technologies and economic trends shape business ecosystems and regional development in Asia.
Editorial Deadline 02/09/2025 11:59 PM (UTC +8)
