Managing Conflict of Interest - Organisation for Economic Co ...

72 Managing Conflict of InterestSummary of Philippine Experience with Asset DeclarationViolationsThe Philippine Government maintains records to track thenumber of complaints and charges filed related to asset declaration.Three key offices spearhead these efforts: the Office of theOmbudsman, the Presidential Anti-Graft Commission, and the Sandiganbayan(Anti-Graft Court of the Philippines). Their monitoringefforts indicate that the most common violations under investigationof cases involving asset declaration in the Philippines are:•••••••••Non-filing of SALN;Non-declaration of assets or improvements;Non-declaration of business interests and other financialconnections;False recording of assets for beneficial use in the name ofdummies or other persons;Changing of the mode of acquisition of assets;Intermingling of illegitimate assets with other legitimateassets;Disposal of newly acquired assets at an unrealistic sellingprice to justify sharp increases in net worth;False claim of lottery winnings: almost all filers subject tolifestyle checks claimed that they had won the unexplainedwealth from lotteries;Increase in liabilities due to bank loans without an actual orexisting loan in the bank;Recording of non-existing assets during the initial submissionof the SALN.•Table 2 below summarizes the number of complaints filed from2000 to 2007, the actual administrative charges filed pertaining toSALNs, and the petitions for forfeiture filed during the same periodof time. Notably, very few complaints result in officially filed chargesor petitions.ConclusionAsset declaration legislation and related disclosure and trackingsystems are critical tools in the fight against corruption inthe Philippines. These measures institutionalize transparent andADB/OECD Anti-Corruption Initiative for Asia and the Pacific