Study: Pinoys cool to whistle-blowing

Most Filipinos would rather keep quiet than choose to blow the whistle.

This is according to a study made by the Office of the Ombudsman, which prompted the office to publish a "field guide" on "pessimistic" citizens to encourage them to perform their civic duty.

"The primer is intended as a quick guide for potential whistleblowers and for all those who wish to expose graft and corruption and other varieties of threats to the common good that lurk but are not attended to or are concealed deliberately or indeliberately in their respective offices," Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez said.

Gutierrez described the primer as "a giant leap to institutionalize and strengthen whistle blowing and tipping in the Philippines."

The 70-page guide entitled "Aha! A Citizens Primer on Whistle blowing" was the result of a series of discussions conducted by a joint technical working group from the Ombudsman and the Philippine Province of the Society of Jesus Commission on Social Apostolate.

The group discussions were conducted from October to December 2005 involving 263 respondents composed of professionals, government officials, employees, students, members of the clergy and civil society from across the country.

In the study, 94 respondents or 36 percent said they have had direct experience in whistle blowing.

Of this number, 44 of them claimed difficulty in squealing, encountering physical threats while only nine percent said the effort of whistle blowing is just "easy."

According to the study, there is a prevailing "pessimistic mood" on whistle blowing in the Philippines.

"Sadly but expectedly, there emerges a generally prevailing pessimistic mood of whistle blowing in the Philippines. This mood is based on the participants’ experiences that whistle blowing is resulting to nothing, where the cases and malpractices are not really addressed despite their complaints," the report said.

The study also gathered that most Filipinos are either unaware of their civic roles and duties or simply apathetic.

The study showed many Filipinos see whistle blowing as "useless" or "unsuccessful," seeing the efforts as "dismal" and "disappointing."

The respondents who claimed they had been whistle blowers had complained of not receiving adequate protection from harassment and reprisals.

The guide, however, mentioned how squealers can protect themselves from threats or reprisals, advising the whistle blower to seek the help of authorities, religious groups and non-government organizations.

It also includes a flowchart procedure on how to report incidents of graft and corruption.

The guide also provides ready-made forms in the preparation of complaints, a list of common acts of corruption in government as well as tips and pointers on whistle blowing.

Gutierrez, meanwhile, pointed out the need and the right reasons for squealing.

"Right reasons include all that conduce to the common good," Gutierrez said.

"(The) wrong reasons include anything that primarily serves selfish interests, such as personal dislike or revenge," she said.

Gutierrez said the whistle blower made the right decision to expose the corruption if he is part of the group involved in the misdemeanor.

"(But) if he only got a raw deal from his own co-conspirators and has no reasons higher than that, his credibility would be relentlessly attacked and he may just end up disowning his own exposure," the Ombudsman said.