Corruption taints RP judicial system — PERC poll
The Daily Tribune
09/15/2008
The Philippines has been perceived by foreign business executives as one of the countries in Asia with poor judicial system, results of a survey conducted by the Hong Kong-based Political and Economic Risk Consultancy (PERC) showed.
According to the poll, the Philippines ranked sixth in the vote with a score of 6.10 on a scale that has zero representing the best performance and 10 the worst.
Regional financial centers Hong Kong (1.45) and Singapore (1.92) have the best judicial systems while Vietnam (8.10) and Indonesia (8.26) have the worst, occupying last positions in the survey.
Japan occupied the third spot with a grade of 3.50, followed by South Korea (4.62), Taiwan (4.93).
Malaysia was in seventh place with a grade of 6.47, followed by India (6.50), Thailand (7.00) and China (7.25).
Despite India and the Philippines being democracies, expatriates did not look favorably on their judicial systems because of corruption, PERC added.
The Philippines’ Supreme Court last week dismissed a Court of Appeals judge and sanctioned four other magistrates in connection with the bribery scandal involving the Manila Electric Co. (Meralco)-Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) case.
Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez has also said his office will run after the so-called “hoodlums in robes,” a term used by then President Joseph Estrada to describe the corrupt judges and justices.
The Hong Kong-based consultancy said 1,537 corporate executives working in Asia were asked to rate the judicial systems in the countries where they reside, using such variables as the protection of intellectual property rights (IPR) and corruption.
Transparency, enforcement of laws, freedom from political interference and
the experience and educational standards of lawyers and judges were also considered.
“Year after year our perception surveys show a close correlation between how expatriates rate judicial systems and how they rate the openness of a particular economy,” PERC said.
“Better judicial systems are associated with better IPR protection, lower corruption and wealthier economies.”
The less favourable perception of China’s and Vietnam’s judicial systems are rooted in political interference, PERC said, adding that the Communist Party “is above the law in both countries.”
Despite India and the Philippines being democracies, expatriates did not look favourably on their judicial systems because of corruption, PERC added.
Malaysia’s judicial system has suffered a “serious reputation damage due to political interference,” while expatriates in Thailand “have serious doubts” that moves to expand the judiciary’s powers will be good for the country, it said.
PERC noted the survey involved expatriate business executives, not political activists, so criteria like contracts and IPR protection were given more weight.
“This bias is possibly most obvious in Singapore,” it said, noting that the city-state’s top rating in the survey is not shared by political activists, who have criticised the ruling People’s Action Party (PAP) for using the judiciary to silence critics.
“In Singapore, the general perception of expatriates is that local politics has not compromised the way commercial and criminal law is conducted,” PERC said. AFP