Manila: Senator Francis Pangilinan renewed his call for deeper justice system reforms as he pushed for the immediate passage of Senate Bill No. 1547, which seeks to create a Justice Reform Commission tasked to investigate systemic failures that allow corruption to persist.

According to Philippines News Agency, Pangilinan said public frustration has reached a breaking point, especially amid unresolved scandals such as the multibillion-peso flood control corruption scheme. He emphasized that stolen public funds have contributed to deadly flooding, destruction of homes, and widespread loss of livelihood, yet few high-ranking officials have been held accountable.

Pangilinan stated that the public is desperate for justice and wants the guilty behind bars, not free and enjoying what they stole. He warned that the persistence of high-level corruption and the near-absence of convictions prove that the justice system has collapsed for ordinary citizens, while working perfectly for the powerful.

Under the proposed measure, the commission will be tasked to examine the performance and failures of all five pillars of justice-law enforcement, prosecution, the judiciary, corrections, and community institutions. It would have the authority to obtain documents from the Department of Justice, Ombudsman, Philippine National Police, and Supreme Court; identify procedural delays; study barriers faced by vulnerable sectors; and recommend actionable reforms.

The body would serve for three years with the Philippine Institute for Development Studies as its research arm. Pangilinan's renewed push comes as he opened the Senate's deliberations on the proposed 2026 Judiciary budget last week. He said the PHP67.77-billion allocation must directly improve court efficiency, reduce case backlogs, expand legal aid, and modernize systems long criticized as slow and inaccessible.