MANILA - Malacañang on Wednesday reiterated President Rodrigo R. Duterte's commitment to combat corruption as the Philippines received its best score in the Corruption Perception Index (CPI) in five years.
"The President has truly displayed leadership by example and we expect to see further progress in our ranking and make the country’s score at par with the Asia-Pacific regional average," Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo said in a statement.
Panelo said eradicating corruption is a long-term process but declared the Duterte administration is committed to continue the fight against irregularities.
"Corruption cannot be obliterated overnight for it has significantly developed within our country's system of governance through the years,” Panelo said.
“We see this issue as a constant battle which entails more work on our part but despite this and the challenges which confront the administration, we commit not just to improve our country's ranking but to stay on track in combating the iniquities of corruption as we vow to end its culture in government," he added.
Panelo asked Filipinos to participate in the government's anti-corruption drive by not engaging into corrupt practices.
"We ask the citizenry not to initiate or enable any form of bribery but rather report any irregularity they may experience in dealing with the government, its offices or its officials. It is only through our collective efforts that we can entirely eliminate corruption from our country's institutions," he said.
Panelo cited the President firing his own allies linked in corruption, the launch of a hotline for citizens’ complaints (8888), and issuance of an order on freedom of information, and cutting of red tape in line agencies as some of the efforts being done by his administration.
The Philippines significantly improved in the 2018 CPI conducted by the Transparency International, scoring 36 points for 2018 from 34 in 2017 to climb 12 notches from 111th to 99th place out of 180 countries.
It was the country’s highest score since 2013 and the best under Duterte administration.
Combatting corruption in government is one of Duterte's major campaign promises when he ran for office in 2016. (PNA)
