Transparency

LET your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven. Matthew 5:16 One good effect of having freshly emancipated from a corrupt administration is the emergence of transparency measures to show that the replacing leadership is serious about its platform of governance and is bent on not repeating the same blunder against which it claimed to have strongly stood. This explains why lifestyle check is now observed and why the citizens’ charter is now implemented in public service. The Filipino masses are now more strongly empowered to look into the affairs of their elected leaders and with the help of electronic communication bring erring officials directly into public scrutiny. While we do not support below-the-belt censure by the unlearned or the assuming, it can’t be denied that because of the internet, more people in the government are now afraid to commit acts that may merit public disapproval.

Yet to those who are engaged in dubious activities, evading CCTV or the prying eyes of the public seem to be a walk in the park. They have mastered the art of filing income tax returns that do not reflect their actual earnings; or plot political moves to work around the technicalities of the law without necessarily violating it, such as fielding close kin to run for a position just to break the three consecutive terms set for a locally elected official, and then running again to continue occupying the same seat of power for another three consecutive terms, all the while positioning their entire clans in various political offices to take full maneuver of each and every election. The result is a government system devoid of leaders with integrity, capacity, and genuine passion for public service.

There is yet a long way to see true transparency in government service. We will have to raise