Corruption fight in Philippines an uphill battle

Talk about obvious…. those who know me well are aware of my lack of sympathies for Arroyo, but even I can not dismiss this as excuse. It is hard. Maybe you can compare the Philippines to HK in some ways, but we are a large country, and with resources and many more citizens and not so simple to control. How many billions and billions of pesos are being made through the efforts of mafia, Yazuka, and too many more. Too many favors are open for purchase in the government and courts to call a quick halt to these activities.

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/world/20070803-0446-philippines-corruption-.html

By Karen Lema

REUTERS

August 3, 2007

MANILA – Weak laws, a slow judicial system and public cynicism make it difficult to fight corruption in the Philippines, President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo's anti-graft adviser said on Friday.

Tony Kwok, an anti-corruption crusader from Hong Kong credited with stamping out corruption in the Chinese territory, has beefed up the Philippine government's main graft-busting body but admitted that the Office of the Ombudsman lacks teeth.

'Here, lawmakers failed tremendously because the corruption law is terrible and inadequate. They also failed miserably in providing the Office of the Ombudsman investigative powers,' said the 60 year old, who was hired by Arroyo in 2005.

He persuaded the government to more than triple the budget of the Ombudsman from just 300 million pesos ($7 million) in 2003 to around 1 billion today and increase its staff to 200 from 37.

But that is a small team in a corruption-riddled civil service of more than a million employees.

Kwok said that Hong Kong's Independent Commission Against Corruption finds it relatively easy to follow a money trail through banks, but the Philippines' Congress has refused to lift bank secrecy laws.

And, despite his efforts, graft is still viewed as one of the Philippines' top problems.

Shady practices hold back foreign direct investment and widespread tax evasion – more than two thirds of self-employed people pay less then they should – has thwarted state efforts to significantly boost tax revenues.

Earlier this year, expatriate business people in Asia viewed the Philippines as the most corrupt country in the region, according to an annual survey by the Political and Economic Risk Consultancy.

Kwok is currently overseeing a project, funded by the European Union, to improve government agencies' internal anti-corruption mechanisms.

Over 6,000 signs have been put up in public offices telling staff and public where to go and whom to ask for help to promote transparency and cut red tape.

Kwok has also helped government agencies craft a code of conduct that requires public and private parties entering into contracts to be accountable for their decisions and actions.

But he said Manila must upgrade its anti-corruption laws and speed up the judicial process to really tackle the problem.

Perhaps most important of all is trying to convince people that government agencies, often viewed as the most corrupt offices in the country, are serious about dealing with graft.

'If the people are cynical there is no chance,' he said. 'But Hong Kong had the same problem and the Hong Kong experience shows it can be done.'