"Transparency International defines corruption as the abuse of entrusted power for private gain."
"Transparency International defines corruption as the abuse of entrusted power for private gain."
What did then-Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte, running in 2016 as presidential bet, promise the Filipino electorate?
He said he would eliminate the drug menace and pervasive corruption within three to six months after taking office.
The administration claims success in neutralizing more than 6,000 suspected drug suspects who police insist fought back rather than surrendered during legitimate law enforcement operations. But it’s doubtful whether the drug menace has actually been significantly eliminated. Almost daily, we read newspaper reports about drug buy-bust operations resulting in more arrests. This shows that the illegal trade is a lucrative enterprise that does not deter many from engaging in it despite the very real danger of losing their lives or getting caught and spending time in our already overcrowded jails. It’s in the other aspect of this administration’s pre-election vow to stop corruption dead in its tracks where the failure rate grossly exceeds claimed success in ferreting out those intent on emptying the public coffers.
In fact, according to the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) of Transparency International (TI) for 2019, the Philippines fell 14 notches to 113th spot, or a decline from its previous rank at 99 in 2018. The Philippines tied with five other countries, including El Salvador, Kazakhstan, and Zambia.
The global index uses a scale of zero to 100, where zero is “highly corrupt” and 100 is “very clean.” The index ranks 180 countries “by their perceived levels of public sector corruption.”
The Asia-Pacific region, where the Philippines belongs, has an average score of 45, Transparency International said. It pointed out that the Asia-Pacific region “performs only marginally better than the global average” despite it being often seen as “an engine of the global economy, in terms of political integrity and governance.”
“Many countries see economic openness as a way forward, however, governments across the region, from China to Cambodia to Vietnam, continue to restrict participation in public affairs, silence dissenting voices and keep decision-making out of public scrutiny,” the watchdog said.
“Given these issues, it comes as no surprise that vibrant economic powers like China (41), Indonesia (40), Vietnam (37), the Philippines (34) and others continue to struggle to tackle corruption,” it added.
According to Transparency International, its latest index revealed that “a staggering number of countries are showing little to no improvement in tackling corruption.”
“Our analysis also suggests that reducing big money in politics and promoting inclusive political decision-making are essential to curb corruption,” it added.
Transparency International defines corruption as the abuse of entrusted power for private gain.
It believes “corruption erodes trust, weakens democracy, hampers economic development and further exacerbates inequality, poverty, social division and the environmental crisis.”
Corruption, TI explains, can take many forms, such as politicians misusing public money or granting public jobs or contracts to their sponsors, friends and families, and corporations bribing officials to get lucrative deals.
Corruption can happen anywhere: in business, government, the courts, the media, and in civil society, as well as across all sectors from health and education to infrastructure and sports.
In the concrete Philippine context, corruption can involve billions of pesos allegedly skimmed by officials of PhilHealth amid the COVID-19 pandemic to the lack of public bidding and/or overpricing in the procurement of goods and services, as well as small-time acts such as extortion by traffic enforcers for even minor traffic violations.
Apparently frustrated that he has done little to curb corruption in the past four and half years of his term, Mr. Duterte has ordered the creation of a mega-task force from various agencies led by the Department of Justice to help ferret out corrupt bureaucrats in several agencies, including the Department of Public Works and Highways, Bureau of Internal Revenue, Bureau of Customs, Land Registration Authority, and Philippine Health Insurance System or PhilHealth.
This is certainly a step in the right direction, and Filipinos ought to support this initiative by reporting actual cases of corruption to the Mega Task Force.
I distinctly recall that not too long ago, the World Bank said corruption in the country accounts for no less one-fourth of the total annual national budget. If the proposed budget for 2021 is P4.5 trillion, does this mean that more than P1 trillion will be stolen by the crooks in government this year?
ernhil@yahoo.com
