Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, July 26) — President Rodrigo Duterte on Monday took pride in passing the Freedom of Information bill despite unsuccessful attempts by media to use it to gain access to his personal Statement of Assets Liabilities and Net Worth reports.
During his final State of the Nation Address, he touted that he signed the bill early in his presidency to promote transparency and accountability in the government, including his office.
“To futher promote transparency and accountability in government, we also issued the order of the Freedom of Information that opens the records of transactions, decisions, issuances of all government agencies,” he said during the address.
He has been criticized for keeping his SALN undisclosed for years now despite repeated requests from the media.
Reporters have been tossed back and forth between the Office of the President and the Office of the Ombudsman to request for a copy of Duterte’s 2018, 2019, and 2020 SALN. The Philippine Center of Investigative Journalism on Monday reported that it reached out to the Office of the President’s Malacañang Records Office by phone, but was told that it didn’t have a copy of the document.
The Ombudsman recently announced tighter rules on the public’s access to the SALNs, which is now limited to the following: (1) the duly authorized representative of the one who filed the document, (2) when request is upon lawful order of the court in relation to a pending case; and (3) when request is made for the purpose of conducting investigation.
Government officials can also opt to release their own SALN upon the request of the public, similar to what Vice President Leni Robredo did when media requested for her wealth report for 2020.
Duterte’s former spokesman said it is not the President’s “style” to willingly disclose it despite the practices of other politicians.
