Centavo-wise, Peso-foolish fight against corruption
We often hear grand declarations about the government’s commitment to eradicating corruption. Yet, a look at the national budget reveals a starkly different story—one where our primary antigraft institutions are being set up for a fight with one hand tied behind their backs.
The Commission on Audit, the Ombudsman, and the Sandiganbayan are our constitutional guardians. COA acts as our preventive watchdog, the Ombudsman as our prosecutor, and the Sandiganbayan as the court that metes out justice. Their work is fundamental to ensuring our taxes fund roads, hospitals, and classrooms, and not the pockets of the corrupt.
However, from 2021 to 2026, the combined budget for these crucial bodies has never exceeded half of 1 percent of the total national budget. The lead agency investigating corruption operates on a budget of just P3.6 billion. The Sandiganbayan, tasked with trying complex graft cases, receives even less.
This is a profound misallocation. Their budgets are largely consumed by salaries, leaving little for the modern tools—digital forensics, data analytics, and robust witness protection—needed to untangle sophisticated graft schemes. They face well-funded defendants with high-priced legal teams, creating a lopsided battle in the courtroom.
We economize on the cure while the disease runs rampant, wasting far more public money than we save. For every peso we withhold from the Ombudsman or COA, we risk losing millions to overpriced contracts and ghost projects.
A strategic increase in their funding—particularly for technology and operational capacity—is not merely an expense but a critical investment in fiscal health and a prerequisite for sustainable economic growth.
It is time to substantially increase the funding for our antigraft bodies. It is the most critical investment we can make in the integrity of our republic and the future of our nation.
Manny Ilao,
manny.ilao@yahoo.com
