Corruption, weak laws bog down RP gov’t: study

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippine government continues to score poorly in the areas of stable laws, access to justice and corruption compared to similarly situated countries in the region, a new report on government effectiveness revealed Friday.

The first report by the World Justice Project ranks governments in a variety of categories such as absence of corruption, clear and stable laws, open government and access to the justice system.

The aim of the project is to advance the rule of law around the world in a manner that transcends income and cultural factors.

“Establishing the rule of law is fundamental to achieving communities of opportunity and equity — communities that offer sustainable economic development, accountable government, and respect for fundamental rights,” the report said.

“Without the rule of law, medicines do not reach health facilities due to corruption; women in rural areas remain unaware of their rights; people are killed in criminal violence; and firms’ costs increase because of expropriation risk. The rule of law is the cornerstone to improving public health, safeguarding participation, ensuring security, and fighting poverty.”

The report summarizes the findings of the WJP Rule of Law index based on a general population poll of 1,000 respondents from Manila, Cebu and Davao; and experts’ questionnaires completed by in-country practitioners and academics with expertise in civil and commercial law, criminal justice, labor law and public health.

The index showed that the Philippines rated poorly in terms of open government, clear, publicized and stable laws, absence of corruption and access to civil justice.

The report polled the different mechanisms used by respondents to enforce a contract or to recover a debt in the last 3 years. The poll showed that 27% of respondents used direct renegotiation to resolve a conflict, 23% took no action, 17% took other courses of action, 17% used commercial arbitration procedure, 11% tapped a traditional or local leader while only 5% brought the case to court.

Of that 5%, 75% said they were able to solve the conflict or get their money back through the court in 1-3 years while the rest (25%) did not know how long it would take the court to solve the conflict.

The report showed that of the 13% of respondents who experienced a home burglary in the last 3 years, 51% reported the crime to the police while 49% did not.

It said 50% of respondents agree that the Philippine media are free to express opinions against government policies and actions. Eleven percent strongly agree with the statement compared to 29% who disagree and 10% who strongly disagree.

According to the report, which was based on 35,000 questionnaires and numerous interviews, “the findings need to be interpreted in light of certain inherent limitations.”

“While the index is helpful to tracking the ‘temperature’ of the rule of law situation in the countries under study, it is not powerful enough to provide a full diagnosis or to dictate concrete priorities for action. No single index can convey a full picture of a country’s situation.”

In Asia-Pacific, Japan, Australia and Singapore scored well with the Philippines and Indonesia dragged down by weak justice systems and corruption. Pakistan was near the bottom of nearly every index, and worst in fundamental rights, corruption and access to civil justice

Only two Middle East nations were in the study, Morocco and Jordan. Jordan ranked 12th of 35 nations in absence of corruption but worst in terms of government transparency. Morocco was near the bottom in terms of open government and below average most other categories.

The project, which is advised by former US secretary of state Madeleine Albright and former Irish president Mary Robinson, among others, intends to expand its study for 2011 and 2012. –David Dizon, abs-cbnNEWS.com