Public support in fight vs graft sought

Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales is encouraging the public to get involved in the fight against graft and corruption.

In a lecture at the Ateneo Professional Schools Auditorium in Makati earlier this week, Morales said a paradigm shift in people’s perspective is needed to institutionalize reforms.

“One does not need to be a member of the civil service or to hold an appointive or elective post in government to be a public servant,” she said.

Morales said the best interest of the public must be placed above one’s own if conflict arises.

“For those of us in the public service, we get up for everyone – even for people we don’t even know as the ombudsman came to be to address the need for reliable, effective, inexpensive and honest public service while insulating itself against outside pressure and improper influence,” she said.

Morales delivered a lecture on “Building a Corruption Intolerant Society and Sustaining an Inter-generational National Anti-Corruption Agenda” last Tuesday.

She is chair holder of the 2016 Metrobank Foundation Professorial Chair for Public Service and Governance.

During the event, Morales discussed the various initiatives of the Office of the Ombudsman to strengthen its institutional capacity and to increase work efficiency, including the rationalization of the functions of various bureaus, the filtering of complaints filed with the Office and assessment of processes of key government agencies in terms of risks and vulnerability to corruption.

Morales said these efforts resulted in the resolution of 6,707 administrative and criminal cases in 2015 as the number of cases awaiting action by the court decreased by 16 percent despite a two percent increase in new cases filed.

“The ombudsman is concerned not only about the disposition of complaints filed before the Office,” she said. “It still has to mind cases it filed with the Sandiganbayan and regular courts, as well as its task of promoting awareness on good governance and campaigning for sound public administration.”

Aniceto Sobrepeña, president of Metrobank Foundation, agreed with Morales and highlighted the role of the private sector as a partner in good governance.