While we were sleeping, the Office of the Ombudsman was continuously working, resulting in a daily dose of government officials being dismissed or sanctioned for various corrupt practices.
The latest bunch includes Sen. Lito Lapid, indicted for graft in connection with the overprice of P4.3 million in the purchase of liquid fertilizers when he was governor of Pampanga in 2004.
Lapid was charged for violation of Sec. 3(e) and Sec. 3(g) of Republic Act No. 3019 or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act, when he approved the purchase of fertilizers without a public bidding.
Charged along with Lapid were then provincial treasurer Vergel Baltazar Yabut and provincial accountant Benjamin de Guzman Yuzon, including private respondents Dexter Alexander Vasquez, owner of DA Vasquez Macro-Micro Fertilizer Resources, and Ma. Victoria Aquino-Abubakar and Leolita Aquino, incorporators of Malayan Pacific Trading Corp.
Now, shouldn’t we be afraid of the Ombudsman?
Government action on these charges is long overdue.
According to a World Bank study in 2006, corruption in the Philippines is considered the worst among East Asia’s leading economies, and that the country has sunk even lower among those seen to be lagging in governance reforms.
The 2009 Corruption Perceptions Index published by global watchdog Transparency International showed that the situation in the country improved slightly but still remained serious.
In 2014, the Philippines ranked 85th among 175 countries included in the index, up from its previous 141st ranking in 2008.
The nation scored 2.4 in the TI index, compared to 2.3 in 2008, which ranked us equal to Pakistan, Bangladesh, and the Baltic state of Belarus.
Corruption exists in all levels of government here, especially among high-level civil servants, according to the US Department of State Investment Climate Statement 2013.
Companies generally have little confidence in the Philippine judicial system, and this is due to the allegedly incompetent court personnel, corruption, and long delays of court cases.
As of 2012, the Philippines came in at 105 with a 3.4 CPI in Transparency International’s list that ranks 176 (tied with Algeria, Armenia, Bolivia, Gambia, Kosovo, Mali, and Mexico), countries and territories based on how corrupt their public sector is perceived to be.
The CPI score indicates the perceived level of public sector corruption on a scale of 0 to 10, where 0 means that a country is perceived as highly-corrupt.
Transparency International-Philippines said some of the factors that contributed to the Philippines’ (2.6) slight jump are the improvement in government service, and cutting of red tape.
Corruption in the Philippines further declined in 2014, upgrading its ranking on Transparency.org CPI from 94th to 85th in 2013 and 2014, respectively.
Filipinos are now faced with the troubling Tanim Bala scam at the country’s prime Ninoy Aquino International Airport.
Sometimes these corrupt officials are so brazen, they are practically insulting the intelligence of the madlang people.
Who’s next? Abangan kung sino ang susunod na masibak!
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