ONLY three in 10 Filipinos believe bribery is “never justifiable”, making the country one of the most tolerant towards bribery in Asia, based on the latest findings from the World Values Survey (7th Wave).
According to the dataset analysed by Dr Rogelio Alicor Panao, Inquirer Metrics data scientist and associate professor at the University of the Philippines, just 30.6% of Filipino respondents outright rejected bribery – much lower than in Indonesia (70.4%), Thailand (69.9%) or states like Japan (81%) and Singapore (81.7%), where “outright rejection is nearly universal”.
At the other extreme, 7.9% of Filipinos said bribery is “always justifiable”, the highest rate in the region.
Another 19.4% landed in the middle of the 10-point scale – indicating that many consider bribery acceptable under certain conditions.
“These responses highlight a paradox,” said Panao. “While Filipinos denounce corruption in public life, many also rationalise it as a practical necessity.”
He noted that in a system “marked by red tape, underfunded bureaucracies and patronage politics”, bribery is often seen as a way to “grease the wheels”.
In contrast, countries like Indonesia and Thailand leaned more firmly towards rejection, showing lower tolerance in both extremes and the middle ground.
“It will take stronger institutions that deliver fairness and efficiency without shortcuts,” according to the analysis.
The World Values Survey is a long-running global research initiative aimed at understanding how people’s beliefs, values and norms affect political, social and economic development. The 7th Wave covered nearly 80 countries, including several in Asia.
The findings come at a time when corruption scandals in the Philippines continue to dominate national headlines.
The National Bureau of Investigation on Sept 23 recommended criminal charges against several lawmakers over alleged anomalies in flood control projects.
Last week, separate administrative cases were also filed against a former Highway Patrol Group official accused of receiving a seven million peso (RM508,000) bribe from an arrested suspect.
The bribe was allegedly given in exchange for special treatment and for dropping charges against the suspect, which included violations of the firearms and explosives regulation law and disobedience to an agent in authority. — Philippine Daily Inquirer/ANN
