Anti-graft efforts gain ground–Ombudsman

Ombudsman Maria Merceditas Gu­tierrez said she is elated by the results of the 2009 Political Economic Risk Consultancy (PERC) survey, which reported that the perception of the Philippines has improved.

The results of the survey, which showed that the Philippines’ past rating improved from 9 in 2008 to 7 in 2009, is a manifestation that the country’s anti-corruption efforts are gaining ground, Gutierrez, the country’s graftbuster, said in statement dated Monday. In the survey, 0 is the best rating and 10 is the worst.

The latest risk survey showed that Indonesia is perceived to be the most corrupt economy in Asia. It was followed by Thailand, Cambodia, India, Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia, Taiwan, China and Macao. 

South Korea ranked eleventh, followed by Japan, US, Hong Kong and Singapore. 

The results are based on more than 1,700 responses from 14 Asian economies. PERC explained that the United States and Australia were included for comparison purposes. 

Gutierrez said that through the Multi-Sectoral Anti-Corruption Council, with the Office of the Ombudsman as lead convenor, various agencies of the government and the private sector combined their efforts in combating corruption using a holistic approach.

Government gains 

She said this resulted in the anti-corruption gains achieved by the country during the previous year. She cited the 73.4-percent conviction rate obtained by the Office of the Ombudsman at the Sandiganbayan in 2008.

As a result of the Integrity Development Review being conducted by the Ombudsman’s office on graft-prone agencies, several measures have been instituted which are meant to minimize incidence of graft in said agencies, the statement said.

Through the joint efforts of the Ombudsman, Civil Service Commission, Commission on Audit, under the Solana Covenant, certain agencies have already issued their respective Citizen’s Charters, which will make transactions in these agencies easier. 

According to risk survey, “the actual level of corruption is not as bad as it is often portrayed” and that “talk of corruption in the Philippines has to be discounted since many of the accusations either are grossly exaggerated or completely false.” 

Gutierrez appealed to the public to be discerning regarding the information they receive. She said they should scrutinize everything that they will read and not immediately believe reports which maybe false. She maintained that the government is doing its best given its limited resources to stamp out corruption in the country. –Manila Times