Anti-corruption fight to hit airwaves

If "music hath charms to soothe the savage breast," as English playwright William Congreve has written, maybe it can be used to battle corruption.

The Office of the Ombudsman plans to use the music to educate people about the evils of graft and corruption, which have hindered foreign investment in the country.

Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez said they would seek the help of local radio stations in playing over the airwaves songs with lyrics that slam corruption in everyday life.

"Music is a popular medium to reach the Filipinos and we believe that it is an effective way to spread the message of the value of integrity in our daily lives. Our goal is to help effect social change and transform bureaucracy and our society so we will have zero tolerance for corruption," Gutierrez said.

She said she was hoping that a more frequent airplay of such songs on local radio and music television shows will make the people more aware of the country’s corruption problem and, in turn, motivate the public to become the government’s active partner in eliminating graft and corruption.

Yesterday, the Office of the Ombudsman awarded P10,000 to the composer of the "Texter’s Choice" song in the recently concluded Anti-Corruption Songwriting Competition of the Office of the Ombudsman.

"Kahit na," composed and interpreted by Roberto David, received a total of 1,215 votes cast and posted in the "Text Polling" section of the Office of the Ombudsman’s official website.

The simple lyrics of "Kahit na" tell of a true public servant who works with honesty and absolute devotion despite receiving a low salary and not being recognized for his efforts to be honest.

"Tayo ay Maglingkod sa Bayan," written by Edilberto Reyes III and performed by 9th Avenue, ranked a far second with 208 text votes, while the hard-hitting and Grand Finals winner, "Mahiya Naman Kayo" by rapper Lemuel "Peter Parker" Samblero, placed third with 113 text votes.

The Office of the Ombudsman earlier invited cellular phone subscribers to cast their votes for their choice of the competing anti-corruption songs through text messaging via IVOTE<space>OMB<space>SONG#. Text votes were sent to 2336 for Globe and Touch Mobile, 2218 for Sun Cellular and 5336 for Smart, Talk&Text and Addict Mobile subscribers. Voting was open from May 11 to June 12, 2006.

A detailed breakdown of the votes may be viewed at the Office of the Ombudsman’s website at www.ombudsman.gov.ph. The winning songs and the other top 10 entries may be downloaded on the same website.

Last May 12, the grand finals of the Anti-Corruption Songwriting Competition was held at the AFP Theater in Quezon City where Samblero’s "Mahiya Naman Kayo" bagged first prize, followed by "Walang Kurap" by Jungee Marcelo in second place and "Crossroads" by Christine Bendebel in third place.

The songwriting competition was held in line with the celebration of the 18th anniversary of the Office of the Ombudsman and national "anti-corruption month" last May. It is also among the year-long activities of the "corruption prevention project" of the European Commission-Office of the Ombudsman (EC-OMB).