With corruption controversies continuing to dominate national discourse, a coalition of the country’s most influential business groups has taken an unusually assertive stance, urging Congress to build a new anti-corruption body with powers far stronger than anything currently in place.
The coalition, composed of 20 organizations across finance, industry, and commerce, said the Philippines can no longer rely on advisory-type bodies that merely review complaints and recommend action. They warned that the credibility of the country’s investment climate is now at risk, as companies confront uncertainty triggered by reports of irregularities in public works, procurement, and contracting.
In their joint call, the groups asked the Senate to swiftly approve the bill creating an Independent People’s Commission while pressing the House of Representatives to prioritize its counterpart measure forming the Independent Commission Against Infrastructure Corruption. They also appealed to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to classify both measures as urgent, saying the reform should not be allowed to stall behind other legislative agendas.
According to the coalition, the existing Independent Commission for Infrastructure cannot meet the demands of the moment. The body’s narrow mandate, they said, prevents it from conducting its own prosecutions or enforcing its findings—leaving it dependent on agencies already overburdened or viewed with public skepticism.
The proposed commissions take a fundamentally different approach: they would serve as fully empowered investigative and prosecutorial institutions capable of conducting nationwide probes, filing charges, freezing assets, and recommending institutional reforms. The business sector stressed that such capabilities are necessary to break what they described as a cycle of recurring scandals that weaken public institutions and discourage long-term investment.
They added that a stronger watchdog would reinforce the work of the Ombudsman and Department of Justice by creating a dedicated mechanism focused on rooting out systemic corruption—particularly in infrastructure spending, where billions in public funds are at stake.
The statement emphasized that insulating the commission from political influence is the only way to ensure the public receives clear, unfiltered findings. “A modern economy cannot thrive when doubts linger over how government projects are funded, awarded, and monitored,” the coalition noted.
Among those pushing for the reform are the Makati Business Club, Management Association of the Philippines, Bankers Association of the Philippines, FINEX, and the Federation of Filipino-Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry—groups that rarely issue unified appeals on governance issues unless they view the threat as significant.
By taking this position, the business community signaled that corruption is no longer just a governance issue but an economic one—one that, if left unanswered, could slow the country’s progress at a critical time for recovery and growth.
