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Lifestyle check effective in fighting graft - PAGC

Manila (4 July 2005) -- Where her predecessors failed, President Arroyo is now coming out successful in stamping out graft and corruption from the bureuacracy.

With only a year after creating the Presidential Anti-Graft Commission or PAGC by virtue of Executive Order No. 12, PAGC Chairwoman Constancia P. de Guzman reported recently the biggest government haul of grafters, including a cabinet undersecretary.

In a report released through the Philippine Information Agency Mega Manila Information Office (PIA-MMIO), De Guzman said 12 high ranking government officials were the initial casualties of the highly effective Lifestyle Check project.

The PAGC head also revealed that close to 40 officials from various government agencies have been slapped with punitive sanctions.

Punishments imposed on the culprits ranged from suspension, dismissal from service with forfeiture of retirement benefits, and perpetual disqualification from public office.

De Guzman's report confirmed a separate report published in the May 12, 2005 17th anniversary issue of the Ombudsman's Journal of the Office of the Ombudsman (OMB), which is mandated to investigate graft cases.

For his part, Ombudsman Simeon V. Marcelo said through the Lifestyle Probe, a priority project of the Inter-Agency Anti-Graft body, OMB netted top-ranking officials from the three graft-prone agencies.

As per OMB data, officials dismissed from the service were: one Undersecretary and one Regional Director (Department of Public Works and Highways); and one Assistant Commissioner, one Regional Director and one chief revenue officer (Bureau of Internal Revenue).

One legal officer, one Revenue Regional Head Executive Assistant, and one Assistant Regional Director.

In the Bureau of Customs, one Deputy Commissioner, one Customs Operations Office chief, Miscellaneous Division chief, and one customs collector were dismissed.

Despite the severe lack of manpower and financial resources, the two agencies promised to work relentlessly to achieve significant accomplishments, noting that corruption, together with poverty, is the most pressing problem of the country today. (PIA-MMIO)

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