The Office of the Ombudsman yesterday announced that it will allow public access to the Statements of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth (SALN) of public officials, including those of President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr., and Vice President Sara Duterte.
In his first press briefing in the new post, Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla said he will issue a new memorandum detailing the guidelines for requesting copies of SALNs of civil servants, including the highest ranking ones, by next week.
“That (memo) is what we have to prepare for, the guidelines, parameters that have to be spelled out. And alsothe undertaking of the requesting party,” he said.
“Hopefully by Wednesday next week,” he added.
Remulla, however, pointed out that the release of public officials’ SALNs to requesting parties must still comply with the country’s laws on privacy.
“It cannot be free for all. It doesn’t work that way because there are data privacy and security problems that can arise,” he noted.
Furthermore, Remulla said, “I will ask them to make available this information, but of course, we need requesting parties to ask for specific information, not the whole file,” he added.
The Ombudsman further explained that some information from the SALNs may have to be redacted to prevent them from being “weaponized.”
Additionally, he said applicants will have to explain in writing how the information will be used.
Meanwhile, Akbayan party-list Representative Chel Diokno said Remulla’s move “is a long-overdue correction to a policy that weakened transparency and accountability by restricting public access to SALNs.”
“When the SALN is open to the public, it becomes harder to cover up for ill-gotten gains. It’s about time that all civil servants open their SALNs and restore the public’s trust,” the lawmaker wrote in a statement in Filipino.
To recall, former Ombudsman Samuel Martires prohibited access to SALN without the express consent of the SALN owner.
