‘Parliamentary form of government least susceptible to corruption’

Parliamentary forms of government are the least susceptible to corruption and other forms of bad governance, according to lawyer Raul Lambino, chairman of Charter change advocacy committee on government form and structure, based on statistics from the group Transparency International (TI).

Lambino said the United States, as the primary example of a presidential system, was only ranked 19th out of 20 top countries in 2004 seen as the least corrupt nations. Chile, a South American country also using the presidential form, is rated 20th.

In the top 10 are parliamentary governments that each have a unicameral Congress system, such as Scandinavian monarchies like Finland (first), Denmark (third), Iceland (fourth), Sweden (sixth) and Norway (eighth), Singapore (fifth), New Zealand (second), Australia (ninth), Switzerland (seventh) and the Netherlands (10th).

"These indicators can be surfed on the Internet by anyone... which establishes the fact that the unicameral parliamentary system is far better than the presidential form," Lambino said.

He said Singapore, the only Asian nation in the top 10 of the TI list, has maintained its annual lofty ranking since 2001 after it was rated only eighth in 2000.

He also disagreed with Sen. Edgardo Angara, who has proposed snap elections, saying the Charter change drive is now in "high gear."

"With due respect, Sen. Angara merely echoed Senate Minority Leader Aquilino Pimentel Jr.’s earlier call," he said.

"I believe that the public articulation of the pros and cons on amending the Constitution is giving the people opportunity to size up the political leaders of this country, whether they indeed have the best interests of the people at heart or not," he added.

Lambino said Filipinos should form their own individual opinions about the Charter change advocacy. He said that unless the people take the initiative, the prevailing political culture will keep them and future generations shackled to poverty and ignorance.

"The reality is that we alone, as Filipinos, united in our common objective, can bail us out," he said. "The unicameral parliamentary, aside from its efficiency and accountability, can be maintained with just half of the P35 billion that sustains the operation of the present Congress."

He said the presidential bicameral system is a waste of taxpayers’ money when legislation is as simple as enacting ordinances fathered by members of the Sangguniang Pambayan or Panlalawigan. "Why make life complex?" he asked.