Marcos is still the most corrupt Philippine president.

RELATED DATA: Estimates of funds allegedly embezzled from 9 countries

The October 2007 Pulse Asia survey (read survey here) which showed that Filipinos consider President Arroyo as the most corrupt Philippine president, beating even the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos, shows that Filipinos have short memories.

Based on cases of corruption linking President Arroyo and his family, and comparing the amounts involved with those of the Marcoses, Ferdinand Marcos and his administration is still top in the “most corrupt” list. This is based on Newsbreak’s own calculations of alleged ill-gotten wealth under the Arroyo administration: a total of $164.7 million, compared to Marcos’s $10 billion.

After the Marcoses left the Philippines in 1986, the Aquino government estimated the Marcos ill-gotten wealth to be between $5 billion to $10 billion. Swiss authorities froze US$356 million of Marcos’ ill-gotten wealth in various Swiss banks. This amount ballooned to $680 million as the amount earned interest yearly until it was turned over to the Philippine treasury in 2004.

This is just one evidence of the Marcos wealth. It is part of the $2 billion the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) has recovered since 1986. In 1998, Mrs. Imelda Marcos alleged that Marcos cronies still held $13 billion of the Marcos wealth through various companies.

Newsbreak estimates the amounts involved in the alleged major corruption cases under the Arroyo administration. (In US dollars; based on a US$1=42 pesos exchange rate)

Although the perception, based on the recent Pulse Asia survey, is that Arroyo is worse than Marcos, the fact is, the Marcos’ “kleptocracy” has not yet been surpassed. The bad news is, there’s still two-and-a-half years left of the Arroyo administration.

^{1 Mark Jimenez has alleged that Arroyo’s first Justice Secretary Hernando Perez asked for a $2 million bribe to have the IMPSA project approved; the total bribe for IMPSA was alleged to be $14 million}

^{2 A witness has testified that the 5.1 kilometer Diosdado Macapagal Blvd. is overpriced by P600 million or roughly $14 million}

^{3 In 2003, Senator Edgardo Angara alleged that the Office of the President tried to extort $20 million from Fraport, the German firm which built the new airport terminal}

^{4 In 2003, Senator Panfilo Lacson alleged that First Gentleman Mike Arroyo laundered P321 million or $7.6 million in campaign funds and other contributions in the Jose Pidal account, which Congressman Ignacio Arroyo acknowledged to be his}

^{5 Newsbreak reported in 2003 that First Gentleman Mike Arroyo undertook real estate transactions of at least 5 properties in the US worth $7.1 million from 1992 to 2000}

^{6 In the 2004 elections, P728 million in agriculture funds were allegedly diverted to Arroyo’s presidential campaign}

^{7 This is assuming a 10% commission of the $500 million North Rail project}

^{8 This is assuming a 10% commission of the $329 million NBN project; losing bidder Joey de Venecia has alleged that he was offered a $10 million bribe; former NEDA chief Romulo Neri has alleged that he was offered a P200 million or $4.7 million bribe}

^{9 This is based on testimonies of jueteng operators and bagmen who testified in 2005 that the Arroyos received between P500,000 to P1 million monthly in illegal gambling from different regions; this estimate is based only on six regions turning over P1 million monthly in the past six years; not all regions have jueteng collections}

^{10 Senator Panfilo Lacson has alleged that the cash handouts to congressmen and governors last October 2007 reached P160 million or $3.8 million}

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