GLOBAL INTEGRITY REPORT: PHL 'VERY WEAK' RATING ON GOOD GOVERNANCE
[PHOTO - http://pcij.org/ - Despite strong anti-corruption legislation challenges remain with anti-corruption institutions in the Philippines]
MANILA, MAY 9, 2011 (STANDARD) by Christine F. Herrera - A WASHINGTON-BASED rating agency gave the Philippines a �very weak� overall rating of 57 in 2010, down from its �moderate� score of 71 out of 100 in 2008 on issues of �good governance, transparency and less corruption,� a House leader said Friday.
�The overall score of the Philippines has significantly decreased, primarily driven by a widening implementation gap between its laws on the books and their actual implementation,� the Global Integrity Report in 2010 says.
House Minority Leader Edcel Lagman said the report unmasked as lacking in substance and performance the Aquino administration�s high-profile campaign on less corruption.
�While anti-corruption legislation is strong, the anti-corruption agency does not have the ability to effectively deliver on its remit,� the report says. It rated the Philippines� actual implementation of safeguards and checks and balances at 31 out of 100.
The report rated the Executive branch at a �very weak� 34 on conflicts of interest, safeguards and checks and balances. The House and Senate fared better and were rated 61, while the Judiciary was rated 45.
The political financing transparency was lowest at 16, the report says.
�Political financing is an area of weakness and the disclosure of political finance records, as well as enforcing conflicts of interest safeguards, are a particular concern,� the report says.
�Even though the country�s supreme audit institution is adequately resourced, citizens cannot access its reports, which brings into question its transparency and accountability function,� the report says.
The testimonies of recent whistle-blowers reveal that there is a culture of omerta within the supreme audit institution with whistle-blowers risking ostracism or physical harm. Political interference is rampant in the country�s insufficiently-funded law enforcement agency.
The report evaluated the anti-corruption, legal and practical implementation and enforcement of those frameworks.
It is an essential guide to anti-corruption institutions ad mechanisms around the world, intended to give policymakers, advocates, journalists and citizens a common set of facts with which to debate.
The Philippines earned good scores on freedom of speech procurement regulations, which seem to be implemented effectively.
Lagman, also chairman of the ruling opposition Lakas-Kampi CMD, said the downgrading validated that after 10 months in office, the Aquino administration had neither initiated nor started any prosecution before the courts of any errant public official for graft.
He said the downgraded ranking also validated the previous finding of the Hong Kong-based Political and Economic Risk Consultancy that the Philippines� corruption rating worsened to 8.9 from 8.25 in a scale of one to 10 in a survey covering the period November 2010 to February 2011.
�The Aquino administration�s campaign on good governance and less corruption was limited to drumbeating and sloganeering,� Lagman said.
�The Aquino administration has nothing concrete to show that it has improved on the record of governance and anti-corruption efforts of the previous Arroyo administration.�
Even the Truth Commission, which Lagman said was created with much braggadocio, was scuttled by the Supreme Court as unconstitutional and the decision had not been reconsidered.
The �good news Web site� proposed by Presidential Spokesman Edwin Lacierda to reverse President Benigno Aquino III�s dwindling performance ratings would either be an empty page for the dearth of heart-warming stories or a perjured page of conjured �good news.�
Global Integrity Report. Anti-corruption challenges remain in Philippines FROM http://blogwatch.tv/
Despite strong anti-corruption legislation challenges remain with anti-corruption institutions in the Philippines
As a local partner of Global Integrity, an award-winning international nonprofit organization that tracks governance and corruption trends globally, the PCIJ is pleased to share with you the results of the 2010 Global Integrity survey of 36 countries, including the Philippines, that was launched worldwide today, 4 May 2011.
This latest study of Global Integrity showed that corruption risks have precisely increased in the run-up to the revolutions that are now buffeting a number of countries in the Middle East and Africa
The study noted that, �Egypt�s performance on key anti-corruption and transparency measures fell consistently from 2006 through the end of 2010, putting increased pressure on the country�s already fragile governance environment in the run-up to the January 2011 revolution.� Similar weaknesses were discovered �across a range of other countries in the Middle East and North Africa including Yemen, Morocco, and the West Bank.�
�The findings for a number of countries in the Middle East and North Africa, both in our 2010 data and looking back several years, paint a disturbing picture,� said Global Integrity�s Managing Director, Nathaniel Heller.
�Countries in the region universally struggle on implementing even the most basic anti-corruption and transparency safeguards, such as ensuring access to government records, protecting an independent media, debating budgets in a transparent manner, and enforcing conflicts of interest safeguards to ensure that public officials do not benefit financially from their positions in government,� said Heller. �With rare exceptions, the Middle East and North Africa is a black hole when it comes to good governance. Perhaps Egypt should have surprised us only in that the revolution took so long to happen.�
The highlights of the report on the Philippines follow:
* �The overall score of the Philippines has improved, driven by a narrowing implementation gap. The Philippines earned high scores on freedom of speech and media. The country has very solid procurement regulations, which seem to be implemented effectively.� * �While anti-corruption legislation is very strong, the anti-corruption agency does not have the ability to effectively deliver on its remit.� * �Political financing is an area of weakness and the disclosure of political finance records is a particular concern.� * �Even though the country�s supreme audit institution is adequately resourced, citizens cannot access its reports, which brings in to question its transparency and accountability function. The testimonies of recent whistle-blowers reveal that there is a culture of omerta within the supreme audit institution with whistle-blowers risking ostracism or physical harm.� * �Political interference is rampant in the country�s insufficiently funded law enforcement agency.�
The Global Integrity Report: 2010 covers developed countries such as Canada and Italy as well as dozens of the world�s emerging markets and developing nations, from Albania to Cameroon to Tanzania. Rather than measure perceptions of corruption, the report assesses the accountability mechanisms and transparency measures in place (or not) to prevent corruption through more than 300 �Integrity Indicators� as well as journalistic reporting of corruption. Gaps in those safeguards suggest where corruption is more likely to occur.
To access full results, please visit http://www.globalintegrity.org/report. 2010Global Integrity Report
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