Sadly people are often unable to take the public statements of their government at face value. Way too often people see leaders saying and promising one thing while privately doing the other -perhaps even laughing at the naivety or impotence of the electorate. Not here in the Philippines though. Not in August 2010. Not on the issue of corruption and accountability. Nobody can seriously now question the commitment of the new administration in tackling graft.

In his younger days as a student in the southern Philippine province of Sulu, Al-Ghosaibi Jutli saw the huge potential seaweed farming held for local communities if only it was properly organized and exploited. Seaweed is used to produce everything from bread, beer, soap and toothpaste through to crucial fertilizers, vitamins and medicine.

Now working as a counselor in a Sharia court in Zamboanga del Norte, Jutli laments that the Sulu seaweed industry will remain an untapped dream and living conditions back home will never improve as a result.

He says the one-time big-time humanitarian and livelihood missions of civic organizations there are greatly appreciated and helpful, but admits their effects are not expected to last in the long run.

While government members and their staff are relatively well-catered for in terms of training programs for better transparency and accountability, lawmakers – who have the power of the purse – and the judiciary – which rule upon issues of governance are typically less-well served.

Given good governance is fully dependent on the smooth working and interaction of all three arms of the government, this is somewhat surprising.