INTERNATIONAL & LOCAL COOPERATION WILL HEAL THE SOCIAL CANCER OF CORRUPTION - ANGARA

Senator Edgardo J. Angara today said that a shared responsibility in fighting corruption through international cooperation and championing of best international and local initiatives is the key to healing the social cancer.

"Corruption has characterized many of our country's practices and is a major ingredient of our economy. It cannot be stamped out overnight. Only a well-studied groundwork, with international cooperation and local initiatives, can bail us out of this hole and nurse us back to a healthy society," said Angara member of Global Organization of Parliamentarians Against Corruption (GOPAC).

He added, "In our fight towards eliminating corruption, we must recognize the fact that everyone has a role to play. Corruption creates a huge dent not only in our economic and governance initiatives but also in our nation-building efforts. Thus, getting rid of the social cancer is a shared responsibility."

As early as December 2003, the Philippines signed the United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC). The convention rests on four pillars: preventive measures, criminalization of certain corrupt acts, international cooperation and asset recovery.

In November 2006, UNCAC, through the efforts of Angara was ratified by the Senate making the Philippines the 2nd country in Southeast Asia to do so. UNCAC aims to strengthen the government's anti-corruption drive and help hasten the Philippines' current and future efforts to recover ill-gotten wealth stashed abroad by corrupt government officials.

Recently, Angara attended the GOPAC meeting and announced that the Philippines will host the global anticorruption conference saying that it will be a good opportunity for the newly proclaimed President-elect Aquino to link up with parliaments all over the world who are confronting the same challenge of eliminating corruption from our institutions.

Angara initiated various reforms to address corruption from its root like the Government Procurement Reform Law which remains the biggest anti-corruption measure in the country and the Ombudsman Law which seeks to weed out corrupt officials in the country.

"Recognizing the fact that corruption dampens our efforts toward achieving our country's societal goals is one thing, mobilizing government's initiative and people's participation is another thing," Angara added.