The death of Rene Saguisag recently drew many accolades for the man's legendary honesty and his zeal to defend the rights of the poor and the oppressed. His former staff in the Senate glowingly wrote, “how in the putrid morass of Filipino politics, there was this man who remained unsullied by filthy lucre, and unimpressed by fleeting fame . . . and insisted on returning gifts sent to our office including gallons of ice cream which were brought to the astonished donor, in completely melted state.”
There are indeed exemplars in the government bureaucracy. The late Saguisag had shown that the government is not a parched land bereft of any honest official, motivated to serve with selfless zeal and dedication. There are some unsung heroes who can be paragons of integrity, efficiency and competence in the dark corridors of government power.
I just wonder why print media does not recognize the top ten congressmen and top ten senators any more. The defunct Philippine Free Press used to publish its yearly choice of best legislators in its cover issue. Does it mean that there are no longer Salongas, Dioknos, Laurels, Rectos, Osmenas, Osias, Paredes, Puyats, Tanadas, Tolentinos in the Senate? I do not think so. Sure, our present Senate is a lightweight compared with the past. Cynics may look at our Congress as a desert. Or even the government service as a whole. I believe that there is a good number who deserve to be recognized as “oasis” in the desert, if you will.
Importance of Recognition
With corruption creeping in almost every nook and cranny of the government service, the importance of recognizing exemplars seems to be overlooked. Studies abroad indicate that if public trust is monitored and publicized, engagement and productivity follows. Recognition is a driver of government effectiveness. Engaged government employees tend to provide better customer service, which in turn helps improve the public’s experience with and trust in government.
Reputable survey companies like Pulse Asia recognize government officials through their trust ratings. It is nice to get a high rating on trust. But the word “trust” here is nebulous in meaning. It simply means a high chance of winning an election. As proven in the past, persons who have high trust ratings win easily in any elective post in the government. But their performance, with some notable exceptions, leaves much to be desired. It is a non sequitur, therefore, to conclude that a government official with high trust rating will perform better and can be trustworthy.
“Trust” in the Philippine experience is a subjective term. It simply means winnability but not trustworthiness to hold a position with integrity and performance. Let’s take a cue from Deloitte – a reputable worldwide consultancy and auditing firm – in its survey on the trust of U. S. Federal government employees – through one-on-one discussions and FGD with current and former civil servants, career leaders, and political appointees, as well as an online survey of 475 federal employees at more than 35 agencies.
Based on this methodology, Deloitte arrived at a model that serves as a template for judging the positive behavior of a government employee. It is based on four trust models: humanity, transparency, capability and reliability. Humanity simply means people-orientedness (makatao); transparency, means openness in dealings in government (walang tinatago); capability, the power or ability to do something (kakayahan); reliability, means the quality of being trustworthy (maasahan).
My List of Exemplars
Based on these trust models, allow me to mention a few based on my own observations and feedback from independent sources. For space limitations, I will cite only four. Let’s start with the administration of the late President Ferdinand Marcos, Sr. Two stalwarts stood out eminently, namely Cesar Virata and Rafael Salas. They came out unsullied and unscathed from the putrid smell of corruption and the dark days of dictatorship. They came out as pillars of integrity, competence, and efficiency.
In President Benigno Aquino's administration, I identified Sonny Coloma, whom I paid tribute to at the end of his term, as a quintessential Presidential spokesman. Gifted with words and a mellifluous voice, he delivered his regular press conference with elan and credibility.
Sonny’s impeccable record of service in the government was no fluke. In President Cory Aquino’s administration, he first served as Undersecretary of Agrarian Reform. It was followed by his appointment as Undersecretary of Public Works and Communication, then, Deputy Executive Secretary. He also served as Undersecretary of Public Works and Communications in the short-lived administration of President Estrada. All these, Sonny served well without any whiff of corruption.
My fourth in the list of exemplars is the incumbent DOLE Secretary, Bienvenido Laguesma. He rose from the ranks of the department. I knew him up close and personal when he was still Director of DOLE, Region V, until his appointment as Secretary of Labor and Employment by President Estrada. Secretary Benny had to leave his lucrative law practice to serve as DOLE Secretary of PBBM. As an action man, Secretary Benny hit the ground running by having all pending nominations in tripartite bodies approved by Malacanang. He immediately called for a meeting of the National Tripartite Industrial Peace Council to arrive at a consensus on labor and social policy issues. The hallmarks of his administration in less than two years are the Labor Employment Program (LEP) and the Roadmap on the Freedom of Association after several consultative meetings with the NTIPC, as well as the Committee of Experts of the ILO. Secretary Laguesma is a model of a public servant who is at heart with his indefatigable service without any taint of corruption.
These are the exemplars in government service whose enviable record in government service under those four models of trust are worthy of emulation by others. May their tribe increase!
(Author is vice president of ECOP)