Loren calls on Filipinos to work together to fight corruption

Former Senator Loren Legarda called on government and all Filipinos to fight the culture of corruption prevailing in the Philippines today, saying it hinders progress while giving the country a bad image in the international community.

Loren said that there’s no point in debating whether corruption in the Philippines should be blamed on bribe-givers or on bribe-takers because both contribute to the problem.

A member of the Senate from 1998 to 2004, Loren issued the statement in reaction to a survey that showed the Philippines as Asia’s most corrupt economy.

The survey that polled 1,476 expatriates was conducted by the Political Risk Consultancy, Ltd. (PERC) in the first two months of the year.

"We should all endeavor to remove the Philippines from this ignominious list of corrupt economies since a country perceived as corrupt is shunned by foreign investors," said Loren.

Capital flight will have a very bad effect on the economy of the Philippines, thus the need for all Filipinos "to stop finger-pointing on the issue of corruption and to unite in solving this problem," she said.

Some have criticized PERC for alleged bias against the Philippines, but Loren said she has full confidence that Filipinos will take the survey result constructively, as a "wake-up call for much-needed change."

"We don’t shoot the bearer of the bad news, in this case PERC, but work to ensure that the news we get is favorable," she said.

On those who are questioning the validity of asking expatriates to rate corruption levels in countries, Loren said expatriates, being well-traveled, can really compare countries based on their personal experiences.

"They can be objective too since they are somehow detached and can really see problems that locals may not be able to see," she said. Loren has been a staunch anti-corruption advocate as a journalist and senator.