Graphic showing the corruption scores of 13
Asian countries. The Philippines is perceived
by foreign businessmen as Asia’s most corrupt
economy, according to a survey Tuesday.
Singapore and Hong Kong were seen as the
cleanest economies, while China, Indonesia and
Vietnam posted improvements, the Hong
Kong-based Political and Economic Risk
Consultancy (PERC) said.(AFP)
By Carlos H. Conde
MANILA: Expatriate businessmen in Asia
perceive the Philippines as the most corrupt
country in the region, according to a survey
released Tuesday.
Singapore was ranked as the least corrupt of
the 13 economies surveyed, followed by Hong
Kong and Japan, according to the annual
corruption survey conducted by the Political
and Economic Risk Consultancy, based in Hong
Kong.
“The Philippines has
the distinction of being perceived in the
worst light this year,” the survey stated.
“People are just growing tired of the
inaction and insincerity of leading
officials when they promise to fight
corruption.”
The survey, conducted in January and February,
queried 1,476 expatriate executives in 13
countries and territories in Asia. The
Philippines scored 9.40, where a score of zero
is the least corrupt and 10 is the most
corrupt.
In the 2006 survey, in which Indonesia was
regarded as the most corrupt, the Philippines
scored 7.80. Indonesia improved its score to
8.03 this year, a development that the report
credits to a government anti-corruption
campaign.
The report noted, however, that for the
Philippines, Indonesia and Thailand, where
corruption is systemic, “it is really
splitting hairs to say which one has a worse
problem.”
“The Philippines has been getting the least
amount of foreign direct investment, and the
level of foreign capital flowing to its stock
market is also less than in either Indonesia
or Thailand,” the report noted.
To the question “How effective is the judicial
system at prosecuting and punishing
individuals for corruption when abuses are
uncovered?” the respondents gave the
Philippines a score of 9.06, with 10 being
“ineffective.”
The poll is certain to rile President Gloria
Macapagal Arroyo, who has claimed that her
government’s efforts against corruption are
bearing fruit. Arroyo hired Tony Kwok, an
anti-corruption crusader from Hong Kong
credited for stamping out corruption in the
Chinese territory, as an adviser in 2005.
To the question “To what extent is corruption
a deterrent to your willingness to invest and
expand your business?” the Philippines scored
8.50, with 10 reflecting “a major deterrent.”
Local corruption monitors confirm that graft
and bribery in the Philippines remain rampant.
Corruption has penetrated every level of
government, from the Bureau of Customs down to
the traffic police officers who pull over
motorists to demand bribes.
Nearly $2 billion dollars, or roughly 13
percent of the Philippines’ annual budget, is
lost to corruption in the country each year,
according to the United Nations Development
Program.
