The Main Souce of Graft

“MAPping The Future” Column in the INQUIRER – 30 November 2009

THE MAIN SOURCE OF GRAFT

By Vicente T. Villegas

It was refreshing to read Mr. Joey Bermudez’s comments on corporate hypocrisy in his article, “Forked Tongue” published in the October 26 issue of the Inquirer. As President of the prestigious Management Association of the Philippines (although he clearly was not speaking for the association), he has shown that business after all is not a closed fraternity/sorority that practices omerta.

Corruption in Government

Everybody blames government officials and politicians for bringing shameless corruption to this country. With national elections fast approaching, the pace of the blame game is accelerating and all kinds of moral reform groups are forming to save our country from the corrupt politicians who intend to win again in the coming elections. They, of course, will win again simply because our efforts are targeted towards only one side of the corruption equation.

Business Provides Funding

The other side of corruption consists of members of the business sector variously known as booty capitalists or business oligarchs, who provide the major source of funding. Among them are road and bridge builders, importers and exporters, property developers and contractors, tax evaders and smugglers, dealmakers, foreign and local suppliers of capital goods, materials and services, and even respectable-looking, high profile corporations—both local and foreign (the latter prompting the passage of The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act by the United States, the European Union and Japan).

Amassing Wealth through Bribery

Political corruption and business corruption are undoubtedly closely intertwined. But not in the way most people suspect or even the way business people would like to put it, i.e., business is hostage to political corruption. It is actually the other way around historically and...