11 December 2013 – The Philippine delegation, headed by Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales, successfully participated in the Fifth Session of the Conference of the States Parties to the United Nations Convention against Corruption (COSP-UNCAC) held in Panama City from November 25 to 29.
During the General Discussion on November 26, Ombudsman Morales emphasized that “good governance is good economics” by linking the Philippines’ unprecedented economic growth of over seven percent in the last four quarters to the continuing resolve to tackle the remnants of the culture of corruption and impunity as part of the Aquino administration’s reform agenda.
Ombudsman Morales also presented “Tuwid na Daan” or the Straight Path as President Benigno S. Aquino III’s governance direction for the country, with the anti-corruption call “Kung walang corrupt, walang mahirap”, which literally translates to “There will be no poor if there is no corruption.”
“The administration believes that corruption is the root cause of the country’s woes, and eliminating corruption will necessarily lead to renewed investor confidence, inclusive growth and development, poverty reduction and attainment of peace,” Ombudsman Morales added in her statement.
The Philippine delegation spelled out the country’s anti-corruption drive in the interventions delivered by Assistant Ombudsman Evelyn A. Baliton and Anti-Money Laundering 
Council (AMLC) Executive Director Julia Bacay-Abad during the Plenaries on Prevention and Asset Recovery on November 27 and 28, respectively.
Assistant Ombudsman Baliton reported in her intervention during the Plenary on Prevention the following initiatives: (1) Integrity Management Program (IMP) being jointly embarked on by the Office of the President and the Office of the Ombudsman, which aims to build a culture of integrity and excellence in the public sector through the constant application of public values and norms in the daily practice of public sector organizations; (2) engagement with CSO partners through the establishment and implementation of a CSO Coalition Framework on UNCAC monitoring and their participation as regular members of the Integrity Management Committees of government agencies; and (3) the Philippine business sector-led Project SHINE (Strengthening High level commitment for Integrity initiatives and Nurturing collective action of Enterprise advocating for fair market conditions).
Meanwhile, during the Plenary on Asset Recovery, AMLC Executive Director Abad shared that PH has established a non-conviction based forfeiture regime under the Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2001, as amended (RA 9160). “The Philippine government is ready, willing and able to assist foreign states in executing order of forfeiture obtained in the requesting states,” AMLC Executive Director Abad added.
Department of Justice (DOJ) Senior State Counsel Marlyn L. Angeles served as panellist during the International Cooperation Expert Meeting held on 25-26 November 2013. Atty. Angeles, in her presentation, focused on the domestic legal framework on extradition and mutual legal assistance in the Philippines and its application in practice. Atty. Angeles identified as main implementation challenges to Chapter IV of the UNCAC (International Cooperation) several deficiencies within the PH system, while recommending ways to address those challenges. END
