Invoking the ‘power of we,’ the Institute of Corporate Directors Philippines (ICD Ph) described the critical synergy between the public and private sectors in advancing good governance to foster pro-poor and inclusive growth and fighting corruption and fraud.
In a press briefing to launch the Global Governance Summit on September 19 with the theme, “Leading the Future, Strengthening Unity, ICD board of directors was in unison in advocating their message of “Doing things right and the right way.” “It takes two to tango,” Dr. Jesus Estanislad, chairman emeritus and ICD founder, said. “It is important for the private sector to practice corporate governance to facilitate growth.
However, on the flip side, we also must have a strong partnership with the public sector for good public governance to create a positive political and economic environment that will attract investors, thus achieving inclusive growth.”
ICD vice chairman Imelda “Ida” Tiongson highlighted the importance of good corporate governance in building global trust and enhancing perceptions about the country.
“Inclusive growth has always been a hot topic,” Tiongson said, adding, “Good governance, as an instrument and constituent of the welfare of the poor, is critical to poverty reduction because good governance facilitates participatory, pro-poor policies and sound macroeconomic management. It ensures the transparent use of public funds, encourages growth of the private sector, promotes effective delivery of public services, and helps to establish the rule of law.”
She added that the combination of political, economic, and institutional features of good governance, especially the control of corruption and regulatory quality, improves the income of the poor and decreases poverty.
According to the ICD, good corporate governance, as embodied in the control of corruption and the design and implementation of effective regulatory policies, significantly improves the ability of people with low incomes to participate in and benefit from economic growth.
For his part, Senen “Bing” L. Matoto, ICD board member and president of the Rotary Club of Makati, stated that good corporate governance helps companies operate more efficiently, improve access to capital, mitigate risk and safeguard against mismanagement.
“It makes companies more accountable and transparent to investors and gives them the tools to respond to stakeholder concerns,” Matoto said.
To achieve these goals, the ICD is partnering with some schools and Church organizations to imbibe good governance “at a young age,” and at the community level.
“We are all in this together. We must work together to achieve good governance and fight the three biggest challenges that hinder our growth: Corruption, poverty, and the lack of civic-mindedness,” Estanislao said.
He added, “If you have corruption, then there is poverty. But we have corruption because there is a lack of civic mindedness among Filipinos. So we have to address those challenges through participative good governance.”
Long way to go ICD Ph president Atty. Pedro Maniego lauded the initiatives of the ICD founding members, adding that through their perseverance, the organization is now celebrating its silver anniversary and ready to address the country’s corporate governance challenges.
He said, “The Philippines has made considerable strides since its inception. However, our country still lags behind its ASEAN neighbors in the Corporate Governance Scorecard. We cannot and should not remain in a business-as-usual mode to catch up and eventually surpass our counterparts. We must do much more!”
However, Maniego said that although we face challenging times, the Philippines has performed well and consistently registered a significant economic growth rate.
“But it is still way behind in FDIs versus our ASEAN neighbors primarily due to poor perception of its global competitiveness. Good governance creates a stable and transparent environment needed to attract investment that drives economic growth. It enhances a country’s global reputation, building trust and confidence among international partners and citizens.”
