At least 20 of the Philippines’ largest business, civic and professional groups on Thursday issued a joint manifesto condemning what they described as “shameful, unabated, continuing, and excessive” corruption in government infrastructure projects, vowing to hold officials and contractors accountable.
The coalition singled out the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), local government units and the Commission on Audit, accusing officials of engaging in systematic plunder of public funds. “Corruption in infrastructure projects is a crime against the people, especially the poor who continue to live in dire poverty,” the groups said.
The statement also blasted Congress for alleged involvement in overpriced projects, “ghost” roads and bridges, questionable budget insertions, and the funneling of contracts to companies tied to lawmakers’ families. “It is time to clean the ranks of Congress,” the groups said, calling for new leadership with integrity and the will to end corruption.
The organizations pledged to identify and expose officials implicated in graft, mount legal action against them and their private-sector accomplices, and blacklist contractors found colluding with politicians. They also committed to promote the Integrity Pledge — a business sector initiative that bars bribery — and to cooperate with banks and the Anti-Money Laundering Council in tracing hidden wealth.
Signatories to the manifesto include the Management Association of the Philippines, Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Employers Confederation of the Philippines, Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Financial Executives Institute of the Philippines, and other national and regional groups.
“Justice for the Filipino people, especially the poor, can only be achieved by successfully punishing the corrupt. Enough is enough,” the groups said in their closing statement.
CebuBusinessNews.ph
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