Pimentel urges ADB to name 44 erring firms

MANILA, Philippines - Senate Minority Leader Aquilino Pimentel, Jr. asked Thursday the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to disclose the names of 41 firms and 38 individuals it had sanctioned for corruption involving bank-financed activities. In a statement, Pimentel said the disclosure would enable “to help the Philippine government curb and resolve corruption in the country and dispel doubts over the integrity of some of the Philippine companies doing business with ADB." He also urged the Senate to launch an inquiry, in aid of legislation, through an appropriate committee, to look into the identities of the sanctioned firms and individuals, especially if these are Filipinos, so that the government and the public will be properly guided. A published report from the ADB’s Integrity Division reveals that 582 companies and individuals have been banned from working with the bank since 1998 when it began investigating the alleged corrupt practices. In 2008 alone, the ADB received 186 complaints, resulting in 89 investigations, representing a 23 percent increase from the 2006 level and a ten-fold leap since the bank’s anti-corruption drive started in 1998. The same report revealed that 74 percent of the cases investigated involved bank-financed activities while 18 percent involved bank staff members. Of those investigated for that year, 41 firms and 38 individuals were sanctioned by the ADB. The companies sanctioned have been prohibited from doing business with ADB for up to seven years, while similar sanctions against individuals ranged from one year to an indefinite period. - GMANews.TV