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Saturday, June 04, 2005
Espinoza: Lessons unlearned
By Elias l. Espinoza
AFFIRMATION. The SWS survey on bribery in government is an affirmation of what most people are thinking. Businessmen are aware and some of them may even be part of the shady transactions with government offices or agencies.
As usual, the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) and the Bureau of Customs (BOC) continue to hold on to their bad reputation.
It would have been nice if the DPWH, BIR and BOC, for once, managed to turn their image around. As to how long these agencies will retain their corrupt image is a big question.
What saddens me is the report that the Office of the Ombudsman falls in the category of moderate. As the front liner in the fight against corruption, the Office of the Ombudsman should have led the survey.
While I refuse to believe it, the survey report is a fact and has somehow ratified the suspicions and skepticism by some that the Office of the Ombudsman is not as corruption-free as it is portrayed to be.
For this administration to clean its ranks of corruption, reforms should start not only from the bottom or middle, but should come from the top and down, which some say is unlikely to happen.
Malacañang officials have not been spared by accusations of brokering hi-fi deals and getting astronomical commissions. The recent controversy on jueteng has further put a cloud of doubt on the integrity of the current leadership.
Politicians also dip their fingers into everything that will fatten their pockets. In the same manner that those in the private sector will do just about everything to get juicy contracts from the government. And at the end of the day, it is the public that suffers,while the corrupt public servants live in style and luxury.
Eliminating or preventing corruption still largely depends on us. It is everybody’s concern. Remember that it takes two to tango. Without the briber, there can be no bribery.
CONCON. President Arroyo has let the cat out of the bag when she announced her intention to hold a constitutional convention (Concon) for the Charter change and a shift to a parliamentary form of government.
The desire for the shift began at the time of former president Fidel Ramos then president Joseph Estrada, whose stay in office was short-lived.
The President’s call for a Charter change through a Concon is something that is always under suspicion because it is a means of perpetuating those in power.
Members of Congress, on the other hand, maintain that the government does not have the money to undertake the Charter change. Instead, they prefer a constituent assembly, which the Senate opposes.
As to whether it is the right time now to amend the Constitution, the answer depends on which side you are on. However, many believe that a unicameral parliamentary form of government is right for us.
Under a unicameral system, there is one legislative body. And in case of loss of trust, the party in power can replace the executive leadership without going through the process of revolution or election.
It also means less unnecessary government expenses. Imagine the billions of appropriation for the lower and upper houses that will go to infrastructure projects and services that directly benefit the public and not the officials’ pockets.
Arroyo’s call for a Charter change through a Concon should be viewed objectively. Politicians should set aside their personal and vested interests for the greater good.
If not for the ethnocentricism and avarice of our supposed leaders and had the government of then president Corazon Aquino improved on the parliamentary system that the Marcos administration left, we wouldn’t be in this mess right now.
This is a lesson that most, if not all, of our politicians or leaders have never learned. Just a like a song, the answer is blowing in the wind.
(June 4, 2005 issue)
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