The Philippine Online Chronicles

President Benigno Aquino III reinforced his campaign promise to remove governmental corruption during a Cabinet anti-graft workshop held yesterday.

“We cannot sustainably fight corruption unless we reintroduce a sense of accountability—a sense that, if you commit a crime, you will be punished,” he said in a speech opening the workshop.

“If certain elements are still able to prevent Gloria Arroyo, for example, from being held accountable then it makes a mockery of our anticorruption efforts.”

When the Supreme Court issued a temporary restraining order against the government’s travel ban on former president Arroyo, the House of Representatives moved to impeach Chief Justice Renato Corona.

The president added, "It shouldn’t matter if you are a former President or in the lower ranks of public service. If you are dishonest, then you must be held to account.

"What the people ultimately demand of us is that we continue our reforms, that we fight harder than our opponents, so that we can truly create a new status quo."

Aquino also cited the 2012 Index of Economic Freedom released by thinktank the Heritage Foundation.

“Despite some progress, corruption continues to undermine prospects for long-term economic development,” the entry on the Philippines says. “The inefficient judiciary, which remains susceptible to political interference, does not provide effective protection for property rights or strong and transparent enforcement of the law.”

In his speech, Aquino wished to “send a stern yet simple message: No one evades justice. There are no exceptions in our campaign against corruption.”

Earlier this week, the leftist political coalition BAYAN urged the public to be critical of President Aquino’s alleged political maneuverings in the midst of the Corona impeachment.