For Annie Geron, General Secretary of PSLINK, a
confederation of 305 local public sector unions in the Philippines, the
fight against corruption is a core issue. Why so important?
Corruption for us is much more than a ‘bread and butter’ issue, like working conditions and salaries. For us, the moral issue - having honest, efficient and functioning government offices – is even more important. We organise civil servants, so it’s very close to our hearts to improve the image of the public sector. It also helps to promote trade unionism.
Annie has a long history of activism, first as a student and, when she started working as a low-paid clerk 27 years ago, in the ongoing struggle to improve the working conditions of civil servants. Now, she has led PSLINK since 1988.
Fighting corruption is dangerous, isn’t it?
Yes! My colleagues and I have been threatened. Two years ago, non-uniformed police tried to arrest me at my workplace, the TESDA* Women’s Center. The union had exposed high level corruption by the then TESDA Director General, Dante Liban. Union members formed a human barricade to prevent my arrest and the police, who had no written arrest warrant, withdrew.
What had you found out?
The case involved trafficking of young Filipino women and misuse of
public funds. Falsified “Artist Record Books” were
distributed to dubious recruitment agencies, which used them to tempt
thousands of unqualified young women to work in Japan. They thought they
were going to work as entertainers, only to find themselves forced into
the sex industry. We estimate that Liban was responsible for deploying
some 8,000 girls per month.
To gather evidence, we mobilised activists and NGOs, to encourage
complainants to come forward, and we worked closely with legitimate
promotion agencies responsible for representing and booking genuine
talent. We even planted activists in suspect agencies and posed as
applicants to find out how the scam operated.
PSLINK filed a case against Liban in the Presidential Anti-Graft Commission and made a complaint to the Philippines Ombudsman. Because he was a political appointee, they also put pressure on the President, to ask why this man was being kept in his position despite overwhelming evidence of corruption and illegal activities. Finally, after months of campaigning, Liban was dismissed from his position.
But then they wanted to arrest you!
Indeed! They wanted to arrest me on charges of libel. Then, I was on temporary bail until last February when I appealed my case. A decision in July dismissed the case against me. PSLINK and the local union are still pursuing the criminal case against Liban. The administrative case had to be dropped because he is no longer in the government’s service.
Despite the threats to her personal safety, Annie says her resolve to fight corruption is stronger than ever.
So, you are getting results?
Yes, we are able to show that the union is not only talking about fighting corruption, we pursue a case until its resolution. We have been ‘branded’ as the union with a strong position against corruption. Just last month, one official in TESDA was dismissed for dishonesty and a provincial director was suspended for one year without pay for gross misconduct (13 counts of violations arising from overpricing in procurements and for giving advantage to her own brother as supplier of goods).
While PSLINK might not always be able to win salary increases because of economic restraints, Annie sees the issue of corruption as directly related to people’s economic well-being.
How does that hang together?
If you fight corruption and prevent the wastage of public funds, the money provides additional funds for public services. This is particularly important for women, as they are often the most marginalised. When basic services are not delivered because of corruption, it is women who have to make ends meet, find ways to put food on the table and send children to school. This could explain why women’s groups and unions headed by women are at the forefront of the fight against corruption. We might belong to different political and ideological blocks, but when it comes to corruption, we are one.
International union solidarity is also crucial. I believe the support mobilised by PSI literally saved my life – it made me too visible to simply disappear. As a result of international pressure, the President intervened to ask authorities to guarantee my safety.
* Technical Education Skills Department Authority
Text: Donna McGuire
Corruption in the delivery of primary school textbooks had resulted in up to more than half of the books not being delivered. PSLINK worked with NGOs to mobilise union members and boy and girl scouts to physically count the books during the delivery process. This reduced the number of missing textbooks to five per cent.
A healthy alternative
The union is involved in monitoring the procurement of medical
drugs. Together with NGOs they identify any discrepancy between the
listed purchase price and the actual money paid. They also monitor the
quality of medicines, promote the purchase of generic brands and check
expiry dates to ensure that out-of-date medicines are not being
off-loaded onto Filipino people.
Monitoring public works
Monitoring and publishing estimated costs and expected
finishing date of projects means that questions can be asked when they
are not finished on time or run way over budget.
Protecting whistle-blowers
PSLINK has published standard provisions that unions can
include in collective agreements to ensure action against corruption.
The union provides legal protection for members in case they are charged
or harassed as a result of whistle-blowing, as there is little
protection or support for whistle-blowers in Philippine society. The
union has also developed a form, which members can use to report
corruption, and an activist kit, containing frequently asked questions
about corruption. These materials are translated into the major
indigenous language.