[OPINION] Fixing corruption starts with reforming a defunct DPWH
Recent legislative hearings and online exposés have shown an alleged corruption scheme in flood control projects. The scale of it shocked the nation as government contractors Sarah and Curlee Discaya revealed scores of legislators, government engineers, local elected officials, and private contractors purportedly involved in the scheme.
Amid the horrifying corruption scandal, I hung on to a seed of hope—the investigations at least seemed to be leading to concrete changes. The public outcry that followed has shamed implicated officials enough for them to resign or get axed from their posts. DWPH Secretary Manuel Bonoan resigned early this month, in an attempt to take an ounce of responsibility for the anomalies that happened under his watch. Most recently, Senate President Chiz Escudero was ousted following a revelation that his top campaign donor is linked to the anomalous flood control projects.
Changes at the top rung are promising, but rarely do they lead to sustained solutions on their own, as we have seen in previous corruption exposés such as ex-president Gloria Macapagal Arroyo’s NBN-ZTE deal scandal and Janet Napoles’ pork barrel scam. To truly curb corruption, we must overhaul defunct systems that allow corruption to fester, and this begins by rehabilitating the primary department responsible: DPWH.
Let’s face it: DPWH is a defunct agency. No competent and trustworthy government entity unwittingly overlooks a systemic collusion that allows 30% of project costs to be pocketed. We cannot simply charge a years-long, entrenched corruption scheme to a few bad apples in the department. This scale of graft was made possible by structures left unreformed and people left unchecked, whether maliciously or not. Stewards of procurement processes—intended to select top contractors with the best value for public money—failed to weed out bogus companies and repeatedly awarded inflated contracts to the same contractors. Certain roles, such as engineers and section chiefs, seem to wield disproportionate power in the organization, their budgets and lifestyles left unaudited before DPWH Secretary Vince Dizon sacked them for being implicated in the current corruption proceedings. Employees of good faith were likely silenced by a rampant culture of bribery and fear for this level of corruption to go unreported for decades.
Firing implicated personnel and blacklisting corrupt contractors is but a small first step in reforming the department. After purging bad actors, Dizon must continue the long and less-advertised parts of weeding out corruption. This includes building systems that allow for full procurement transparency, putting triple-checked approval and disbursement processes that are difficult to circumvent, and hiring people with integrity and training them to detect and report malicious actions safely. To make this happen, Dizon must foster a psychologically safe culture that rewards honest service and protects whistleblowers against retaliation.
Introducing technology can help build transparency. Sen. Bam Aquino’s Blockchain the Budget bill strives to put government transactions on the blockchain with digital receipts for the public to trace. DPWH can take the opportunity to pilot a version of this proposal within the agency to make the bidding and budget disbursement processes more transparent. Whether through blockchain or simpler technology, such digital solutions should enable audits and alerts from concerned employees, third-party watchdogs, and the general public. DPWH’s technology should allow concerned citizens to monitor projects, and a proper reporting procedure must be in place for the public to raise red flags based on the data.
Corruption is rampant, not just because there are bad actors, but because there are bad systems and a bad culture that enable gross theft to occur under millions of watchful eyes. While it is cathartic to watch investigative hearings finally condemn corrupt officials and contractors, we cannot let the drama of the chase distract us from demanding permanent solutions from our government. Without reforms and overhauls, it will just be different people carrying out the same graft offenses under the same system. Demand better transparency and keep an eye on DPWH. We cannot let this be yet another corruption crisis gone to waste.
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not reflect the opinions of PhilSTAR L!fe, its parent company and affiliates, or its staff.
