Root causes of the high incidence of graft and corruption in the Philippines

A perception survey on the root causes of the high incidence of graft and corruption in the Philippines was conducted using a quota sampling technique.  The respondents were categorized into 6 sectors, namely:  business, labor, academe, government, legal profession, and marginalized groups.   

Table 1 describes the breakdown of the respondents who participated in the perception survey.

Sector	Description	Respondent	%
Business	Business owners	78	14.9%
Labor	Employees in private firms	123	23.4%
Academe	Educators and students	127	24.2%
Government	Employees in government agencies	64	12.2%
Legal Profession	Lawyers	55	10.5%
Marginalized	Informal settlers, persons with disabilities, senior citizens, indigenous people	78	14.9%
Total		525	100%

Table 2:  Sectoral Breakdown of Perception Survey Respondents

Olken (2007) asserts that perception surveys are a good measurement of knowing and confirming objectively the extent of corruption.

The statements in Table 2  were used to determine the root causes of the high incidence of graft and corruption in the Philippines:

Statements	Weight	Interpretation
Electing the wrong public officials (Senate, House of Representatives, LGU) will stimulate corruption within government agencies and units	5.438	High
Electing the wrong president is the start of a potentially corrupt administration	5.371	High
The role of families and households is critical in the development of a culture of corruption in society	5.248	High
The business sector and other sectors of society oftentimes create opportunities for officials to commit corruption	5.055	High
The educational system of the country contributes to the culture of corruption	4.592	High
Corruption in the Philippines is hopeless	3.684	Moderate

 

Table 2:  Premise statements to determine the root causes of graft and corruption in the Philippines

   

              There are many root causes of graft and corruption in the government.  But the most critical is that electing the wrong President will be the start of a corrupt administration.

              This confirms that the country’s unitary presidential form of government coupled with a free and open party system created weak political parties, weak judicial structures and weak legislature, thus contributing to the emerging phenomenon of an imperial presidency which president tends to overwhelm the other two co-equal branches, the legislature and the judiciary.  Thus there is a need to review our country’s system of government and considering changing the country’s free and open party system.

Since the country is suffering from a democratic deficit, there is also a need to create stronger political parties to close such deficit, making Philippine democracy more responsive to the citizenry as a whole and address the interests and demands of those at the bottom of society.

However, corruption is not an exclusive domain of the government.    It permeates the most basic social unit of society, the family.

Moreover, these values are further aggravated by the worsening poverty level, lack of opportunities within the country, technological innovations, exploitation by media and commercialization of culture and education.    Currently, a research was conducted where one in every ten families give money, gifts, or favor to facilitate availing of a service from a government service.   Vote buying is already prevalent in every election especially during the campaign period, or on the election day itself when the voters are about to enter the polling booth.

Mass media has become the most powerful tool used by the politicians to manipulate the voting public. It shapes and molds opinions and attitudes and defines what is normal and acceptable.   What is disturbing is that the mass media’s influence in delivering information has always been political.

What is also critical is that the business sector creates opportunities for government officials to commit graft and corruption in order to gain favors for the business enterprises 

Finally, the failure of the Philippine educational system to educate young Filipinos contributes to the high incidence of graft and corruption in the country.   This lack of education results to the lack of sense of nationhood which eventually connects to the core values of love of country, honesty and integrity.  Results of the qualitative interview emphasized that the country’s lack of sense of nationalism goes back to the foreign occupations by the Japanese and Americans; the effects of the war in our country led the Filipinos to forget these values.  Thus, corruption also happens within the classroom and within the boundaries of the school.  Teachers are considered major influencers to the youth.    Hence, the power of the youth vote in any electoral process cannot be understated.  That is why it is important that a law for an extensive voter education at the grassroots level (households, schools and communities) be enacted.   

References:

Griffin, E. (2009).   First Look at Communication Theory (7th ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Higher Education.

Hutchcroft, P. & Rocamora, J. (2003).    “Strong Demands and Weak Institutions: The Origins and Evolution of the Democratic Deficit in the Philippines."  Journal of East Asian Studies 3 (2003), pp. 259-292.

Sison, J (2013).  “Vote Buying,”  Philippine Star Global (Opinion).

Jo

G