'Phl anti-corruption drive gaining ground'

NEW YORK (via PLDT) –The Aquino administration’s effort to stamp out corruption is gaining momentum but may need more push to make it sustainable, according to a US-based group monitoring developments in Asia.

“President Aquino has raised these issues very forcefully, but the system has many elements of corruption and so it’s going to require sustained effort over time and I believe that President Aquino has made a great start in that process, but it will need to be an ongoing process,” Jaime Metzel, executive vice president of Asia Society, said.

“As everybody knows, corruption is the scourge of the Philippines. It has the most talented population maybe in the world but so many Filipinos are helping build other countries and it has become a country that exist largely on remittances,” he said.

Metzel said he is confident Aquino can deliver on his promise because he leads by example.

The group’s president, Vishakha Desai, agreed that most Filipinos believe the Aquino administration’s effort is bearing fruit.

“Well, I do think that he has managed to convey an image of not only a decent human being but truly committed to transparency and everybody feels that he says what he means,” she said.

“It’s not just some kind of a jargon that it is not simply lots of big token speeches but to really try to make a difference there. And I think one has to give him very high marks for that,” Desai emphasized.

Asia Society’s main advocacy is to strengthen relationships and promote understanding among the peoples, leaders, and institutions in the US and Asia. 

“The Philippines is a critically important country both in Asia and in the world and we always feel that it is important to raise the profile of the Philippines,” Metzel said.

“And at the same time, the Philippines has had a lot of problems and President Aquino has done a great job in his first year in office in beginning to address them and we would like to celebrate the great start that President Aquino has made (to end corruption),” he added. The President’s meeting with Asia Society is just one of his numerous engagements here.