Not the Philippines — thank God! According to the latest Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI), the Philippines, in fact, improved slightly, moving 2 places up from 141 last year to 139 this 2009. But still this is seen as way down below the ranks when compared to other Asia-Pacific countries. Among the 32 countries/territories in the region, the Philippines ranks 24th, with a score of 2.4 out of 10. The lower the score, the more it reflects perceptions of rampant corruption. The country is still lagging behind Singapore (no. 2 in the region), Brunei (7), Malaysia (11), Thailand (14), Vietnam (22), and Indonesia (19). Singapore is also ranked the no. 3 least corrupt country in the world.

Globally, among 180 countries surveyed, the top 10 most corrupt countries in the world based from the Corruption Perceptions Index 2009 are:

Rank – Country – Score
180 – Somalia – 1.1
179 – Afghanistan – 1.3
178 – Myanmar – 1.4
176 – Sudan – 1.5
176 – Iraq – 1.5
175 – Chad – 1.6
174 – Uzbekistan – 1.7
168 – Turkmenistan – 1.8
168 – Iran – 1.8
168 – Haiti – 1.8
168 – Guinea – 1.8
168 – Equatorial Guinea – 1.8
168 – Burundi – 1.8

The Philippines has still a long way to go to improve perceptions of corruption in the country. No matter how those in the office will assure the Filipinos that the Philippines is political stable, and there is a nationwide crackdown on corruption, those from afar are seeing a different scenario.

The present government may be doing something, but is that something able to tackle the massive corruption in the public office, be it in the local and national level?

Why can the Philippines not eradicate corruption once and for all? Tough. Because the country’s highest-ranking officials are the ones involved!

It is time to change fellow Filipinos! Let that change manifest in next year’s election. We are intelligent beings and putting the right people in the office is the way to a cleaner government.

Notes:
* The least corrupt country in the world is New Zealand: score = 9.4.
* The U.S. is ranked 19: score = 7.5.
* The CPI measures perceptions of public sector corruption.
* The CPI is not intended to measure a country’s progress over time. It is a snapshot of perceptions of corruption, using data published in the past two years.
* The CPI is a survey of surveys, of experts and business persons, based both in the country and abroad.

Video: Huguette Labelle, Chair, Transparency International