AUTOMATION REDUCES DISCRETION REDUCES CORRUPTION

AUTOMATION REDUCES DISCRETION REDUCES CORRUPTION

“Automation reduces discretion, reduces corruption.”

If I could paint this on every municipal hall, every barangay office, every agency that still depends on paper folders and personal favors — I would. It is not just a slogan. It is a governance philosophy. It is an anti-corruption roadmap. And increasingly, it is a national survival strategy.

Why? Because in the Philippines, discretion is a currency. It is the fertile soil where bribery grows, where fixers thrive, and where the slow, painful grind of public service becomes a breeding ground for abuse. Every time a public official can say, “Depende sa atin ’yan,” corruption gains a foothold.

But when processes are automated, discretion shrinks. And when discretion shrinks, corruption suffocates.

Look at the evidence. Countries with automated tax systems have drastically reduced under-the-table dealings because there is no longer a “collector” who can “fix” your problem. Cities that moved permit applications online reported faster issuance and fewer complaints. In e-payments and e-procurement systems across Southeast Asia, the pattern is the same: the more digital the process, the less room for manipulation.

So why are we still tolerating long lines, handwritten forms, and processes that rely on who you know instead of what the rules say?

Automation is not a luxury — it is a governance weapon.

HOW COULD THIS BE IMPLEMENTED?

Start small. Start local. Start where the corruption is most painful to ordinary people.

  1. Barangay permits and clearances.
     Move them online. Require digital timestamps. Release them based on standard timelines, not personal interpretations.

  2. Aid distribution.
     QR-coded relief goods tracked through a simple digital inventory system. No more “nawawala ang bigas.”

  3. Local taxes and fees.
     Use e-payments. Remove cash handling. Fixers do not survive when there is no cash to pass under the table.

  4. Procurement.
     Even small LGUs can use online posting, automated requirement checkers, and digital opening of bids. Machines do not play favorites.

This is not science fiction. Every technology needed for this has existed for years — most of it free or low-cost. What is missing is political will, and perhaps a little pressure from the public.

WHO SHOULD BE THE PLAYERS AND PARTNERS?

• LGUs — because local governments are where citizens feel corruption most.
 • CSOs and People’s Councils — because someone must watch the watchers.
 • Academe and IT groups — because solutions must be designed, tested, and improved.
 • National agencies (DICT, DILG, COA) — because standards must be uniform and auditable.
 • Ordinary citizens — because automation must be demanded, not merely offered.

In other words: automation requires a coalition. You cannot fight corruption with technology alone. You need champions. You need civic pressure. You need leaders who understand that transparency is not a burden but a protection — for both the public and themselves.

CALL TO ACTION: HOW DO WE START?

If your barangay or city still relies on manual systems, push them to pilot ONE automated process within the next six months. Just one. Even a small one. What matters is momentum.

Here is how any LGU can start:

  1. Identify the “discretion points.”
     Where does an official decide something by judgment instead of rule? That is the corruption hotspot.

  2. Design the automated alternative.
     Use e-payments, online forms, QR codes, digital logs — whatever removes human judgment from routine decisions.

  3. Publish everything.
     Automated reports must be made public. Transparency is the oxygen of anti-corruption.

  4. Train everyone.
     Staff and citizens alike. A system only works when people trust it.

  5. Evaluate and expand.
     Document results. Then replicate.

Automation is not here to replace people. It is here to replace abuse. It is here to make the government predictable, consistent, and honest.

Automation reduces discretion.
 Reduced discretion reduces corruption.
 And reduced corruption — finally — gives citizens the dignity of fair service.

That, for me, is a fight worth pursuing.

RAMON IKE V. SENERES

www.facebook.com/ike.seneres iseneres@yahoo.com senseneres.blogspot.com 09-18-2026

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