ORGANIZERS of the "I Run for Integrity: TowardsA New Philippines" set this Sunday at Bonifacio Global City in Taguig aim to tap greater youth involvement in their Integrity Initiative project to stamp out corruption in both the private and government sector.

"We realize the importance of the youth in this project because they can demand and be a catalyst of positive change now ," Henry Schumacher, vicepresident for external affairs of the organizing European Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines (ECCP), told on Tuesday's Philippine Sportswriters Association Forum at Shakey's United Nations Avenue.

"We are looking at 7,000 runners In our second Integrity Run this Sunday, hopefully majority of them will be young people," added ECCP event coordinator Catherine Castanos in the session sponsored by Shakey's, the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. and Smart.

Schumacher said they have invited runners from 25 government agencies and 1,000 companies that have signed the ECCP's Integrity Pledge to weed out corrupt officials and activities from their respective camps.

Among the government departments involved are the departments of Budget and Management, Education, Finance, Energy and Interior and Local Government and the Bureau of Customs, Bureau of Internal Revenue and the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The blue-chip firms that have signed the Integrity Pledge will field participants and support on Sunday's 3K, 5K, 10K and 15K fun runs.  They include Convergys, Aboitiz Power, DHL Express Philippines, Globaltronics and Smart Communnications.

The ECCP official noted they are moving for more government agencies and private companies to join in their crusade "because corruption steals from the people.  They say that it takes two to tango, and we aim to remove the people involved in this dance."

If we have 1,000 companies which have signed the pledge, I see no reason why the remaining 5,000 can't sign the same with the 400 government departments and companies who have not joined the Integrity lniitiative," Schumacher said.

Source: Business Mirror; Sports; 03 May 2012