Philippines elected VP of 76th United Nations General Assembly

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines was elected as one of the vice presidents of the 76th Session of the UN General Assembly (UNGA) for 2021-2022.

Ambassador Enrique Manalo, permanent representative of the Philippines to the United Nations, will represent the Philippines at the session.

“I look forward to working with the president of the General Assembly and representing the Philippines as vice president of the 76th Session. Together with the other vice presidents, I will work collaboratively with colleagues to contribute efficiently towards addressing the complex issues the UN faces,” Manalo said.

The election for the vice presidents was held on June 7 following the election for president of the UNGA of the 76th session, in which Minister Abdullah Shahid of the Maldives was elected after a secret ballot, with Dr. Zalmai Rassoul of Afghanistan as the other PGA candidate.

The nomination of the Philippines as vice president was endorsed by the Asia-Pacific Group through a silence procedure last May 12, along with three other VP candidates to represent the 54-member states of the Asia-Pacific Group: Bangladesh, Kuwait and Lao PDR.

There are 18 VPs across all regions, which include the African Group, Group of the Latin American and Caribbean States, Western European and other States Group, Eastern European Group, also elected by acclamation.

Phl renews commitment to fight corruption

Meanwhile, the Philippines renewed its commitment to fight corruption by nurturing a culture of integrity through prevention, deterrence and implementation.

During a statement at the UNGA special session on corruption, Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. noted that “the merest prejudicial disparity in a bid invites a charge of corruption,” and that “corruption strikes at the life and soul of nations, killing the credibility and therefore viability of states which are nations’ political expression, encouraging the deadly, fast-spreading virus of public cynicism that kills love of country.”

He added that the Philippines’ fight against corruption is not all punitive but also recognizes integrity.

Locsin cited the Seal of Good Local Governance Act that rewards transparency and accountability in the use of public funds, the Anti-Terrorism Act that fills gaps in the investigation and prosecution of money laundering especially for terrorism financing, and the Philippine Government Procurement and Reform Act that requires the presence of civil society observers in local and national government bidding procedures in public procurement.

The secretary also highlighted the creation of the joint oversight committees under the Bayanihan to Heal as One and Bayanihan to Recover as One laws as a response to the pandemic.

The Special Session of the General Assembly on challenges and measures to prevent and combat corruption and strengthen international cooperation was convened by General Assembly president Volkan Bozkir pursuant to General Assembly resolutions 73/191 and 74/276, as well as Decisions 74/568 and 75/562.

In his statement, Bozkir urged policymakers to leverage the special session to take concrete measures to prevent and address corruption, saying in his remarks that “corruption corrodes public trust, weakens the rule of law, seeds conflict, undermines human rights and hinders efforts to achieve the targets of the 2030 Agenda.”

United Nations Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammad stressed that corruption in public service delivery increases costs, lowers quality and distorts the allocation of resources.

She encouraged the General Assembly to use the special session on corruption as an opportunity to chart a different path forward through a transparent, inclusive and accountable approach to governance that will strengthen the social contract between State and people.

“Expectations are high,” she stated, “I encourage you to lead by example, by realizing the commitments you have made in the draft declaration, with the support of the United Nations system.”