Press Release
March 16, 2011

MANILA VOTED AS GLOBAL ANTI-CORRUPTION SUMMIT HOST

Mexico City - The Global Organization of Parliamentarians Against Corruption (GOPAC) has chosen Manila as the venue of its next global conference in February 2013.

The Philippine Senate and the Southeast Asian Parliamentarians Against Corruption (SEAPAC) will jointly host this biennial global gathering, which will be attended by over 500 members of parliament from 50 countries worldwide.

Manila was chosen as a venue in line with the Aquino administration's current flagship program of anti-corruption.

GOPAC is the only parliamentary network with the singular focus on combating corruption. There are currently over 900 members of GOPAC, representing over 90 countries in all the regions of the world.

Senator Edgardo J. Angara, the only Asian representative to GOPAC and founding president of SEAPAC, was elected vice president of GOPAC. Dr. Nasser Al Sane of Kuwait was re-elected president.

Angara was the driving force behind the establishment of SEAPAC in 2005 and is a member of the Executive Board of the Ottawa, Canada-based GOPAC.

"Achieving good governance and fighting corruption can be strengthened by building networks among institutions. International cooperation is a key ingredient. Just as corruption transcends borders, so too must we fight it on a transnational level," he said.

In the Philippines, Angara led the passage of major anti-corruption laws including the Government E-Procurement Law and creation of the Office of the Ombudsman. He continues to push for the Political Party and Campaign Finance Reform bill which will transform political parties into public institutions and maintain transparency in their activities.

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