PH ranking in corruption index 'expected,' says Palace

Malacañang said Wednesday that the Philippines falling six places to rank 120th out of 182 countries in the Corruption Perceptions Index is expected since President Ferdinand ''Bongbong'' Marcos Jr. opened the issue about corruption. 

''Expected po iyan dahil binuksan po ng Pangulo ang isyu tungkol sa korapsyon. So, kung binuksan ng Pangulo ang korapsyon, magkakaroon ng pag-iimbestiga, at ito po ang ninais ng Pangulo – maimbestigahan,'' Palace Press Officer Undersecretary Atty. Claire Castro said at a briefing.

(That's expected since the President opened the issue on corruption. If the President opened the issue on corruption, an investigation is expected and this is what the President wants.) 

''So, noong nagkaroon ng imbestiga(syon), na-open ang mga natatago noon kaya nililinis po ng Pangulo ang nangyari noong nakaraan. Lahat ng dumi ng nakaraan, nililinis ngayon,'' she added.

(So, when an investigation started, those which are being concealed were opened and the President has been trying to cleanse what happened in the past. The dirt of the past is being cleansed by the administration.)

Castro did not specifically identify the ‘dirt of the past.’

The Philippines' score of 32 is below the global average of 42 and places the Philippines in 120th place. 

The result is one point worse than its score of 33 in 2024, which put it in 114th place out of 180 countries measured.

Among other ASEAN members, the Philippines ranks below Singapore (3), Malaysia (54), Brunei (63), Timor-Leste (73), Vietnam (81), Laos (109), Indonesia (109), and Thailand (116). Only Cambodia (163) and military junta-run Myanmar (169) have worse placements on the corruption perception index.

The index, compiled by global anti-corruption monitor Transparency International, measures how corrupt a country's public sector is perceived by experts and business people. — RSJ, GMA Integrated News