WHAT IS CORRUPTION?

“The abuse of entrusted power for private gain”.

In general, corruption is a form of dishonesty or criminal activity undertaken by a person or organization

entrusted with a position of authority, often to acquire illicit benefit.[1] Corruption may include many
activities including bribery and embezzlement, though it may also involve practices that are legal in
many countries.[2] Political corruption occurs when an office-holder or other governmental employee
acts in an official capacity for personal gain.

WHAT ARE THE COSTS OF CORRUPTION?

Corruption impacts societies in a multitude of ways. In the worst cases, it costs lives. Short of this, it
costs people their freedom, health or money. The cost of corruption can be divided into four main
categories: political, economic, social and environmental.

On the political front, corruption is a major obstacle to democracy and the rule of law. In a democratic
system, offices and institutions lose their legitimacy when they’re misused for private advantage. This is
harmful in established democracies, but even more so in newly emerging ones. It is extremely
challenging to develop accountable political leadership in a corrupt climate.

Economically, corruption depletes national wealth. Corrupt politicians invest scarce public resources in
projects that will line their pockets rather than benefit communities, and prioritize high-profile projects
such as dams, power plants, pipelines and refineries over less spectacular but more urgent
infrastructure projects such as schools, hospitals and roads. Corruption also hinders the development of
fair market structures and distorts competition, which in turn deters investment.

Corruption corrodes the social fabric of society. It undermines people's trust in the political system, in its
institutions and its leadership. A distrustful or apathetic public can then become yet another hurdle to
challenging corruption.

CORRUPTION IN THE PHILIPPINES

Corruption, cronyism and nepotism are serious problems in the Philippines. They pervade public life,
keeping tax revenues low and hurting efforts to alleviate poverty. Charges of corruption, graft, and
cronyism are common among government officials at all levels. These problems are so entrenched that
Filipinos have come to accept cronyism and the diversion of a small percentage of funds as natural.

The Philippines ranked 94th out of 177 countries in Transparency International's 2013 corruption index,
rising from 129th two years earlier, after Mr. Aquino pursued corruption charges against former
President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and former Chief Justice Renato Corona, both of whom maintain
their innocence. [Source: Trefor Moss, Wall Street Journal, May 29, 2014]
In the 1990s the Philippines was regarded as one of the world’s most corrupt nations. Most corrupt
nations: 1) Nigeria; 2) Pakistan; 3) Kenya; 4) China; 5) Cameroon; 6) Egypt; 7) Columbia; 8) Uganda; 9)
the Philippines; 10) Indonesia. [Source: Transparency International]

In a survey of 10 Asia-Pacific nation, the Philippine civil service was voted most corrupt. The World
Competitiveness Report ranked the Philippines just below Russia and Indonesia for tax evasion, irregular
payments and favoritism towards well-connected companies. There was a corruption scandal on the
new $657 million international terminal at the Manila airport.

Philippine National Police (PNP) Corruption

Corruption in the Philippine National Police (PNP) and related agencies stems primarily from the unholy
trinity of gambling, drugs, and prostitution that beset law enforcement organizations worldwide.
However, PNP corruption is exacerbated by Philippine law, which gives local officials control over the
appointment and dismissal of local PNP commanders, encouraging corrupt city mayors to make
common cause with dishonest police commanders. Observers compare the PNP to police forces in Al
Capone,s Chicago or 1940,s "L.A. Confidential" Los Angeles. According to Transparency International's
"2004 Global Corruption Barometer," the PNP was the most corrupt national institution in the
Philippines. But in 2006 it acknowledged that the PNP had taken "positive steps" to rectify the situation
such as recruiting civilian officials and implementing sanctions such as dismissal and imprisonment for
corrupt officers.

Apart from corruption, many cops undertake investigative short cuts that often employ physical abuse,
the planting of evidence, and sometimes -- allegedly under guidance from local elected officials -- the
extra-judicial killing of criminal suspects. The PNP suffers from a potent combination of malfeasance
(misconduct or wrongdoing) and misfeasance (improper and unlawful execution of an act that in itself is
lawful and proper) within an institutional culture of poor management. The results permit not only
corruption but also a level of incompetence that is often indistinguishable from corruption. Individual
PNP members are courageous, but -- especially at junior levels -- tempted by the opportunities (and,
given the poverty-level wages, the virtual necessity) to "learn how to earn" from corrupt officers in the
field.

PHILIPPINE LAWS AGAINST GRAFT AND CORRUPTION

 Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act (Republic Act No. 3019);

 Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees (RA 6713);
 An Act Defining and Penalizing the Crime of Plunder (RA 7080);
 An Act Declaring Forfeiture In Favor Of The State Any Property Found To Have Been Unlawfully
Acquired By Any Public Officer Or Employee And Providing For The Proceedings Therefor. (RA
1379);
 Anti-Red Tape Act of 2007 (RA 9485)
 and a lot more.
There are a lot of legal safeguards against graft and corruption but the problem lies in the strict
enforcement of these laws.

DUTERTE ADMINISTRATION’S REFORMS IN THE PNP

Police officers across all ranks will enjoy higher monthly base pay beginning this month after President
Rodrigo Duterte signed Joint Resolution No. 1 authorizing the salary hike for the country's uniformed
personnel.

With the new monthly base pay, a Police Officer 1 (PO1) will now receive P29,668, a 100 percent
increase from the previous P14, 834 monthly basic pay.

The increase in salary means that PNP personnel will also enjoy higher benefits upon retirement, said
Chief Supt. Joselito Vera Cruz, executive officer of the PNP Directorate for Comptrollership.

The PNP is hopeful that the new salary increase will stop, if not minimize, police involvement in illegal
activities, especially low-ranking police officers.

Internal Cleansing

The number of Philippine National Police (PNP) officers who have been dismissed from service has now
reached more than 2,181 since President Rodrigo Duterte initiated internal cleansing among the
agency’s ranks from July 2016 to June 2018.

“The PNP has sustained the momentum of its continuing internal cleansing program in the 190,000-
strong police force over the past two years under the Duterte administration when organizational
discipline and internal reform became the centerpiece of the service agenda of PNP Chief (Oscar)
Albayalde,” PNP spokesman Senior Supt. Benigno Durana said in a statement.

Over 1,828 of these personalities committed serious infractions while 353 are involved in illegal drug
trade.

The agency continues to cleanse its ranks of scalawags in an effort to end corruption and proliferation of
illegal drugs in the country.