Sure, the government could do all sorts of things to ensure bailouts are effectively applied, including giving them directly to the people who need them. They don’t do that because helping the people isn’t the goal. They just say that’s the goal as a marketing ploy.

Bailouts go to huge corporations because that’s who the government cares about. Stopping rich dudes from keeping as much of our money as possible is diametrically opposed to our nation’s fundamental economic and political philosophy. Of course they don’t make a serious effort to keep it from happening.