PRESIDENT Gloria Arroyo has assailed a recent international survey rating placing the Philippines as the most corrupt economy in Asia, saying that on the contrary her government is effectively addressing corruption in government. In a speech during the signing of the 2008 national budget on Tuesday, Arroyo acknowledged the survey made by the Political and Economic Risk Consultancy (PERC) Ltd. group where the Philippines scored nine out of a possible 10 points in a grading system where zero is the best score and 10 the worst. The President said she will pursue her efforts to “clean up the culture of corruption that has plagued this nation for generations.” Underscoring the fact that “the final pillar of a strong economy is an open and transparent economy, free from corruption,” Arroyo urged lawmakers to work with her in passing a comprehensive anti-corruption law. “On our part, we will hold officials accountable if they are found to be corrupt after due process,” she said. “Let the chips fall where they may as investigations are concluded and friend and foe alike are brought to account for their actions in the proper courts.” PERC issued its corruption report at a time when the Arroyo government is being hounded by allegations of corruption, the worst of which is the scrapped $329-million national broadband network contract with the Chinese ZTE Corp. In response to that scandal, Arroyo ordered the formation of a Procurement Transparency Group to ensure that the bidding and procurement process of all government projects is clean. The group will monitor all government projects as they are implemented by concerned government agencies, government-owned and controlled corporations and government financial institutions. The PERC survey covered 13 economies in the region, excluding nations notorious for corruption such as Myanmar and Bangladesh. PERC said some 1,400 expatriates were polled in January and February of this year. “The Philippines is a sad case when it comes to corruption,” the consultancy firm said in a summary report made available to Agence France-Presse. The Philippine situation is “probably no worse than in places like Indonesia and Thailand” but corruption has become politicized and is openly discussed in the media, unlike in authoritarian countries like China and Vietnam, it said. __
