“We deserve leaders who see governance not as a game of survival, but as a vocation of service”
WITH all the noise in politics today, it’s easy to forget that governance is more than just about rooting out corruption.
Don’t get me wrong—corruption must always be fought. It eats away at trust, wastes public funds, and keeps millions in poverty.
But if we only define good government as the absence of corruption, then we’re setting the bar far too low.
Accountability isn’t just about punishing what’s wrong. It’s also about doing what’s right.
It’s about leaders and public servants not only avoiding wrongdoing but actively making things better—building schools, fixing hospitals, creating jobs, and lifting lives.
Sadly, these things often take a backseat to the scandals that dominate the headlines.
Even if, by some miracle, all corruption disappeared overnight, we’d still be left with a broken system struggling to deliver basic services. We’d still have underfunded schools, under-equipped hospitals, and an economy that leaves too many behind. Eradicating corruption is necessary—but not sufficient.
Because at the end of the day, people don’t just need a clean government; they need a government that works.
Here’s the uncomfortable truth: corruption and poverty are not one-way streets. Yes, corruption breeds poverty—but poverty also breeds corruption. When public servants are underpaid and systems inefficient, temptation fills the gap left by need.
A teacher who has to take on three jobs to make ends meet, or a municipal employee who faces daily moral tests just to survive, are caught in the cracks of a broken system.
If we want to fix this, we can’t just scold people for being corrupt; we must also fix the environment that makes corruption tempting and honesty difficult.
So what can we do? Three things come to mind.
First, institutionalize long-term economic planning.
Our government often works in short cycles—three years, six years, depending on the term of office. But development doesn’t happen on a term limit.
We need a clear national vision that goes beyond who sits in power.
A 25-year plan, for example, with measurable goals on education, health, and industry, and the discipline to stay the course no matter who’s in Malacañang. When government work is measurable, accountability becomes real.
You can’t fake progress if it’s being tracked.
Second, make public service worth it. If we want the best people in government, we must make government work an attractive profession.
We can’t keep expecting brilliance, integrity, and dedication from people who are barely compensated enough to live decently.
Competitive pay, merit-based promotion, professional development—these aren’t luxuries.
They’re investments. Because when you value your people, they will value the work they do.
Third, strengthen political parties and broaden political participation.
Many of our political problems stem from weak party systems.
People run for office based on personalities, not platforms.
The moment elections end, alliances shift, and accountability disappears. Maybe it’s time we seriously consider reforms that strengthen parties, perhaps even a shift to a parliamentary system where membership and responsibility to a political party are taken seriously by law.
Only when politics becomes about programs—not popularity—can governance truly mature.
No country has ever prospered by merely pointing out what’s wrong.
The courage to admit mistakes is noble, but the wisdom to correct them and move forward is greater. It’s not enough to know where we failed; we must know how to do better.
Because in the end, what this country needs isn’t just a government free of corruption—it needs a government that truly works for its people. One that builds, heals, and uplifts. One that listens before it talks, and acts before it blames.
We deserve leaders who see governance not as a game of survival, but as a vocation of service.
We deserve systems that make honesty possible and excellence normal.
And maybe—just maybe—if we start measuring progress not by how loud our politics get, but by how well our people live, we’ll finally begin to see the kind of country we’ve always dreamed of.
A government that works is not a dream too big for the Philippines.
It’s a promise waiting to be fulfilled. But it starts with each of us—demanding more, expecting better, and believing again that government can still be good.
That’s the kind of accountability that matters most.
Not just the courage to fight what’s wrong, but the commitment to do what’s right. Always.
