ARTA x OMB

For years, red tape in the Philippines has been treated as an inconvenience: a long line at the municipal hall, a permit that takes three months instead of three days, a form that asks for the same document twice. That framing is too generous. Delay creates leverage and leverage creates the market for fixers and “facilitation fees.” Where processes are slow and opaque, corruption fills the gap.

That is why the recent meeting between the Anti-Red Tape Authority (ARTA) and the Office of the Ombudsman matters. It signals a shift from treating the Ease of Doing Business Act as an administrative reform to enforcing it as an accountability law.

The most consequential point of agreement was the least glamorous: red tape complaints must be built on solid documentary and testimonial evidence.

Complaints filed out of frustration rarely survive scrutiny. Complaints backed by time stamps, receipts and sworn statements can lead to investigations and, where warranted, the preventive suspension of erring local and agency officials. Enforcement without evidence is noise. Evidence without enforcement is wasted effort. This partnership aims to close both gaps.

The digital agenda deserves the same practical reading. Integrating the Ombudsman’s Request for Assistance system with ARTA’s Electronic Complaints Management System and linking both to the eGov PH app, should mean a citizen no longer has to guess which office to approach.

Monitoring BPLOs and eBOSS facilities in local governments targets the exact points where fixers operate. Technology will not eliminate discretion, but it creates a record, and a record is what makes accountability possible.

There is, however, an unresolved problem. The DICT, DILG and BFP use different indicators for eBOSS and eLGU compliance. An LGU can pass one agency’s test and fail another’s. Until these standards are harmonized, compliance will remain contestable, and contestable standards are difficult to enforce. Fixing this should be a priority, not a footnote.

The planned Regulatory Summit in January 2027 takes the effort a step further. By using ARTA’s data on common business complaints, the summit can identify where regulations in energy, water and telecommunications overlap, contradict each other, or leave gaps.

Many burdens on business are not caused by corrupt individuals but by poorly designed rules. The Ombudsman’s role is not only to punish wrongdoing but to recommend reforms that prevent it.

Finally, the involvement of chambers of commerce, ARTA Champions and campus-based student movements recognizes that enforcement agencies cannot be everywhere. Businesses and citizens see the abuses first. Giving them a credible channel to report is as important as any system upgrade.

The test of this partnership will be simple: fewer fixers, faster permits and officials who understand that delay now carries consequences.