Philippine President once more addresses “plague of corruption” in the country
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has ordered the country’s justice ministry to launch an investigation into corruption and graft across all government agencies, conceding that his country continued to be “plagued with corruption.”
In a televised address on October 27, Duterte said “this country continues to be plagued by corruption. I will concentrate the last remaining years of my term fighting corruption, because up to now it has not weakened, but instead has grown stronger.”
Duterte said he was giving the ministry the authority to decide which corruption allegation against any government agency or official to investigate, with priority given to agencies that impact the delivery of government services.
Looking into “anomalies” at state bodies
He issued a memorandum directing the justice ministry to look into “anomalies” at state agencies until the end of his term in 2022.
However, some observers believe it will become an uphill struggle for investigators to identify cases of graft.
In 2016, Duterte won the presidency campaigning on a promise to fight corruption, crime and illegal drugs. But his administration has been dogged by scandals and allegations of graft and cover-ups in state agencies, ranging from prisons, the state insurer, immigration, airports and customs, to police and the drugs enforcement. Few of the scandals have led to convictions or high-profile resignations.
The Philippines fell 14 notches to 113th spot among 180 countries in Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index last year, indicating that the corruption issue indeed has become worse.
The NGO says that the Philippines in fact suffers from widespread corruption, whose means include graft, bribery, embezzlement, backdoor deals, nepotism and patronage.
Corruption in the Philippines got worse in recent years Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has ordered the country’s justice ministry to launch an investigation into corruption and graft across all government agencies, conceding that his country continued to be “plagued with corruption.” In a televised address on October 27, Duterte said “this country continues to be plagued by corruption. I will concentrate the last remaining years of my term fighting corruption, because up to now it has not weakened, but instead has grown stronger.” Duterte said he was giving the ministry the authority to decide which corruption allegation against any government...
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has ordered the country’s justice ministry to launch an investigation into corruption and graft across all government agencies, conceding that his country continued to be “plagued with corruption.”
In a televised address on October 27, Duterte said “this country continues to be plagued by corruption. I will concentrate the last remaining years of my term fighting corruption, because up to now it has not weakened, but instead has grown stronger.”
Duterte said he was giving the ministry the authority to decide which corruption allegation against any government agency or official to investigate, with priority given to agencies that impact the delivery of government services.
Looking into “anomalies” at state bodies
He issued a memorandum directing the justice ministry to look into “anomalies” at state agencies until the end of his term in 2022.
However, some observers believe it will become an uphill struggle for investigators to identify cases of graft.
In 2016, Duterte won the presidency campaigning on a promise to fight corruption, crime and illegal drugs. But his administration has been dogged by scandals and allegations of graft and cover-ups in state agencies, ranging from prisons, the state insurer, immigration, airports and customs, to police and the drugs enforcement. Few of the scandals have led to convictions or high-profile resignations.
The Philippines fell 14 notches to 113th spot among 180 countries in Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index last year, indicating that the corruption issue indeed has become worse.
The NGO says that the Philippines in fact suffers from widespread corruption, whose means include graft, bribery, embezzlement, backdoor deals, nepotism and patronage.
