Speech of Senate President Franklin M. Drilon
at the 3rd State Conference on the UN Convention Against Corruption (UNC)
Malacañang Palace
December 15, 2015

"The first responsibility of a leader is to define reality. The last is to say thank you. In between, the leader is a servant."

Your Excellency, as you look forward to July 1, 2016, that passage from Max De Pree, an American author of books on leadership, is most appropriate.

Mr. President, when you assumed office on July 1, 2010, the culture of corruption was a reality you had to confront. For your Administration was swept into power on a promise of good governance. “Kung walang kurap, walang mahirap,” was the mantra of your campaign platform.

Today, as we convene the third, and probably the last, State Conference on the UN Convention Against Corruption, we say thank you to all the people gathered here, particularly Chief Justice Sereno and Ombudsman Carpio-Morales, for helping Your Excellency's administration walk the difficult path of Daang Matuwid.

Mr. President,

For the past five years, five months, and fifteen days, you have been a servant leader to your Bosses, the Filipino People, in our fight against corruption.

And, the 15th and the 16th Congresses supported you in your reform agenda on good governance.

Let me take this opportunity to briefly enumerate the significant laws we enacted to promote transparency and accountability.

The GOCC Governance Act made state owned enterprises instruments of national progress, instead of milking cows of abusive and corrupt GOCC officials. Last year, fifty GOCCs remitted over thirty billion pesos as dividends to the national coffers.

The Amendments to the Anti Money Laundering Law expanded the list of entities required to report transactions to the Anti Money Laundering Council, or AMLC, and allows courts to inquire and freeze bank accounts ex-parte.

Republic Act 10660 strengthened the functional and structural organization of the Sandiganbayan by creating two new divisions, and redefining its jurisdiction to hasten resolution of cases in the anti-graft court. We urge Your Excellency to already appoint the six new justices to the Sandiganbayan to unclog the dockets of the present five divisions.

To foster transparency and accountability in government transactions and the present system of granting fiscal incentives, your Congress enacted the Tax Incentive Management and Transparency Act, or TIMTA.

Last night, the Senate passed the Customs and Tariff Modernization Act which will fully automate, and make transparent, customs procedures to curb smuggling and other illegal activities in our ports and airports. In 2013, smuggling deprived our government of an estimated two hundred billion pesos in revenues. The CMTA was earlier enacted by the House of Representatives, and we will submit this measure for Your Excellency's approval next month.

To recall, your Senate passed the Freedom of Information Act last year. The Whistleblowers Act will be calendared for plenary debates shortly.

Mr. President, friends and fellow workers in government, the relentless pursuit of good governance in the past five years yielded spectacular results. We have restored pride among our countrymen. We have changed the mindset of our bureaucracy. We now have the confidence of the international community. We leapfrogged forty-nine notches for the past five years, and nine last year, 85th out of 175 countries, in the latest Corruption Perception Index survey done by Transparency International.

The Senate will never waver in its commitment to help lay the foundation of a healthy economy, create an environment marked by political stability and strong institutions, and pursue transparency and accountability.

While we celebrate our gains, we must also commit to safeguard the reforms we have painstakingly put in place, so that neither force, nor personality, can reverse these, even beyond 2016. We must ensure that the fruits of good governance will be enjoyed by this generation, and the generations yet unborn.

Thank you, and good day to all of you.