EDITORIAL - Vigilance for good government

In governance, there is presumption of regularity in delivering public services and implementing state-funded projects and programs.

People are finding out, unfortunately, that the presumption has been abused on a grand scale, and public trust has been betrayed at various levels of government. This betrayal raises the need for strong public vigilance.

Over the past decades, systemic corruption could have cost the country not only billions but trillions of pesos in people’s money.

Those trillions could have built toll-free roads at least in Metro Manila and neighboring areas, eliminating the need to outsource the task to the private sector, thus bringing down logistics costs and helping tame inflation. A modern railway system could have been in place a long time ago. There could have been no backlog of 165,000 classrooms. Broader public health care benefits could be in place. Health care workers and teachers need not take to the streets to demand better pay. The promised farm support services would have been in place, boosting agricultural production and making agrarian reform work.

And yes, decent flood control systems would be in place, if not completely stopping floods, then at least making them subside quickly and mitigating their ruinous impact.

The current administration, on a campaign to address corruption, has rolled out mechanisms to allow public scrutiny of state-funded infrastructure projects. Even if the campaign has been met with skepticism, the public should take advantage of this newfound openness in government and access the sites.

So far, anti-graft advocates are finding the sumbongsapangulo.PH useful in pinpointing substandard or non-existent flood control projects, and identifying those who may be held liable.

This week the Department of Budget and Management also formally launched another site where the public can access a government database and monitor the implementation not only of flood control projects but also other tax-funded infrastructure projects, including big-ticket ones.

It’s called Project DIME – the Digital Information for Monitoring and Evaluation. The data, using satellite and drone imagery and geotagging, can be extensive. Like in sumbongsapangulo.PH, public comments or additional information can be posted online.

Originally initiated in 2018, Project DIME was revived in 2023 and is finally up and running. Perhaps with the current public outrage over corruption, the project will gain traction.

One of the best developments in the ongoing anti-corruption campaign is the enthusiastic participation of the citizenry. While it is sad that thievery rather than regularity is presumed in governance, the readiness of concerned citizens to keep a close watch is a welcome development.

Eternal vigilance is the price not only of liberty, but also of good government.