Al-Asheikh’s Manila visit to strengthen ties, says envoy

The Philippine Embassy has expressed thanks to Shoura Council Chairman Abdullah Al-Asheikh for joining other high-level participants in the meeting against corruption held in Manila early this month.
“The high-level participation of Dr. Al-Asheikh reflects our strong bilateral relations as well as Saudi Arabia’s continuing commitment to fight corruption, just like the Philippines,” Ambassador Ezzedin H. Tago told Arab News on Thursday.
The “5th Meeting of the Global Organization of the Parliamentarians Against Corruption (GOPAC V)” was attended by President Benigno S. Aquino lll who delivered the keynote address. The meeting theme was “Good Leader, Good Law. Good Citizens.”
Aquino said, “It is now up to us to reach out to the most cynical of our people and show them that here is a group of people working past geographical boundaries, convinced that, if and every one of us works toward a better world, then it is possible to push human civilization into its next great chapter — an era of honesty, transparency, inclusiveness and genuine people empowerment.”
The Filipino envoy said that GOPAC V was participated in by 429 lawmakers from 78 countries including 12 heads of Parliament, and it produced the Manila Declaration recognizing the United Nations Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC), the first legally binding and internationally accepted instrument against corruption.
Tago added that Saudi Arabia and the Philippines are signatory and State Party, respectively, to the convention.
The other key speakers of this year’s GOPAC included Philippine Senator Edgardo J. Angara, chair of the Southeast Asian Parliamentarian Against Corruption (SEAPAC); Naser Al Sane, member of the National Assembly of Kuwait; and Sen. Juan Ponce Enrile, current chair of GOPAC and Philippine Senate president.
GOPAC comprises over 700 parliamentarians from over 45 countries, with its global secretariat based in Ottawa, Canada, and committed to cooperate in various ways, including making laws, to eradicate corruption in the national and international levels.