Eighty-four percent of Filipinos believe that there is a need to strengthen the power of national agencies, laws, and mechanisms to fight corruption, according to the latest Pulse Asia survey commissioned by international think tank Stratbase ADR Institute.
Pulse Asia President Dr. Ronald Holmes presented the survey results on Friday during an online forum entitled, “Rhetoric vs. Action: Reviewing the Alignment of Promises and Implementation under the Marcos Jr. Presidency”, organized by the Stratbase ADR Institute and Democracy Watch Philippines.
The polling firm conducted the survey from June 19-23, 2023 and asked 1,200 Filipinos nationwide whether or not they agree with the statement: “Pursuant to the Philippines’ concurrence to international agreements, the power of national agencies, laws, and mechanisms to fight corruption should be strengthened,”.
Eighty-four percent of the respondents agreed to the statement while only 3% disagreed. Thirteen percent said they cannot say if they agree or disagree.
Furthermore, when asked to identify the top three effects of corruption that affect Filipinos the most, 67% percent said that corruption leads to the loss of trust in government services and public officials.
Forty-seven percent said corruption normalized Filipinos’ attitude towards corrupt practices, while 44% said that it results to inefficient service delivery.
Consequently, survey results also showed that if corruption is controlled, 40% of Filipinos believe it will be beneficial for economic recovery and development, while 23% said that it will improve the plight of ordinary citizens and fourteen
In his speech, Stratbase ADR Institute President Dindo Manhit explained the importance of addressing corruption in ensuring economic development.
“The government must ensure that it establishes and maintains the right environment to attract investors and actively collaborates with the private sector, both domestic and foreign. Among the simple desires that we hear from them are transparency, accountability, and responsiveness. Stable policy environment. We cannot eradicate corruption but we should attempt to control corruption,” Manhit said.
On Monday, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr delivered his second State of the Nation Address, where he pushed for digitalization of government services, which he said is a powerful tool against graft and corruption.
“Digitalization will support the government’s data-driven and science-based planning and decision-making. It is the greatest, most powerful tool, not just to improve the ease of doing business, but also against many forms of graft and corruption,” the President said.
Similarly, Manhit also pointed out some of the reforms the Marcos Jr. administration has initiated to improve governance in the country.
“I take note of key structural reforms being initiated by the department of budget and management. We have heard them speak of Progressive Budgeting for Better and Modernized Governance. And I take note that this is a legislative initiative. This will institutionalize things and turn them into law. Even the national government rightsizing program,” Manhit said.
“We need to maximize the resources of government and human resources through the power of technology. We need to find digital transformation as a key part of governance,” he added.
Manhit also reiterated his call for the President to leverage on his administration’s good ratings to make sure that these governance reforms will take place.
“We will be watching, and we will be listening beyond the SONA, as we look into the second year of the Marcos Jr administration,” he said.