ASEANEWS HEADLINE: MANILA: Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla reopens SALNs to public
‘From president down’: Remulla to lay down rules on SALN access | ANC
MANILA, Philippines — As earlier announced, the Office of the Ombudsman has officially reopened public access to statements of assets, liabilities and net worth (SALN) of public officials following a memorandum circular signed by Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla.
The order effectively reverses the restriction imposed by former ombudsman Samuel Martires during the presidency of Rodrigo Duterte.
“This decision is guided by a simple principle: the public has a legitimate right to know how those in government acquire and manage their wealth. Transparency in this area is not a slogan – it is a safeguard against corruption and a deterrent to abuse of power,” the Office of the Ombudsman said in a statement.
The memorandum will take effect 15 days after its publication.
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In 2020, Martires issued Memorandum Circular No. 1, which ordered that SALNs could be released only for official investigations, by court order or if authorized by the SALN owners themselves.
The requesting party had to present a notarized letter of authority from the declarant, effectively barring the public and the media from obtaining the documents unless permitted by the official concerned.
Under the new memorandum, the ombudsman allows the public to access the SALNs for “inspection and reproduction,” subject to reasonable limitations and procedural safeguards.
Once processed and officially recorded into the official repository, SALNs will be made available to the public not earlier than 10 working days after the final submission deadline in all government agencies.
Requests for SALNs would be denied if the Office of the Ombudsman is not the official repository; the requested SALN is not on file; the request is for an unauthorized commercial purpose; the requesting party has a derogatory record of misuse; the request is linked to a pending case to influence or harass; there is evidence of extortion or safety threats; the identity of the requesting party is fictitious or the purpose is contrary to law, morals or public policy.
Some information will be redacted from the SALNs for privacy and security, including the complete address of the declarant; names, dates of birth and ages of unmarried children below 18 years old living under the declarant’s care; signatures and government-issued identification number of the declarant and co-declarant.
Each released copy will also bear a visible watermark, control number and disclaimer identifying the requester to ensure accountability and prevent misuse.
The new rules also require the requesting party who will publish or broadcast the SALNs to submit a copy of their reports to the ombudsman.
It said the ombudsman may use the submitted outputs to monitor the use of public information and prevent misuse and to initiate investigations if the output indicates “potential misuse, misrepresentation or a violation of the requesting party’s undertaking.”
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According to the memorandum, SALNs must be filed with any public assistance and corruption prevention office of the anti-graft body’s central office, any public assistance corruption prevention bureau or sectoral offices.
Those who wish to make a request may file a form issued by the office, present two valid IDs, pay the reproduction or certification fee and wait for the respective offices to review the request.
The memorandum also mandates that all SALNs received by the Office of the Ombudsman be preserved and digitally stored, considering the 20-year regulatory period for filing graft-related complaints under Republic Act 10910.
The new rules also allow requesting parties to file a formal complaint with the Field Investigation Office if they have evidence of assets “manifestly disproportionate to income.” The field office may then conduct lifestyle checks based on the complaint.
SALNs contain the summary of government officials’ and employees’ assets and properties, which are crucial in monitoring public servants’ wealth.
It is mandated under Republic Act (RA) No. 6713 or Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees.
The Office of the Ombudsman keeps records of the SALNs of the president, vice president, heads of constitutional commissions and local government officials.
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SALNs of members of the House of Representatives and the Senate are with their secretariats.
Following his strong support for the lifting of restrictions on public access to SALNs, Las Piñas Rep. Mark Anthony Santos reiterated his call for the immediate passage of the long-delayed Freedom of Information bill.
“The FOI bill will empower citizens to hold their leaders accountable,” he said.
DOJ turns over findings to ombudsman
Meanwhile, the Department of Justice (DOJ) has turned over to the Office of the Ombudsman its findings and recommendations for the filing of criminal charges against those involved in five anomalous flood control projects in Bulacan.
Prosecutor General Richard Anthony Fadullon and DOJ officer-in-charge Fredderick Vida formally turned over the documents to Ombudsman Remulla yesterday.
Named in the documents were several officials of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Bulacan 1st District Engineering Office (DEO) and private contractor Syms Construction.
According to Fadullon, they turned over five cases related to the alleged ghost flood control projects in Bulacan.
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“These involve cases of malversation under Article 217 of the Revised Penal Code, falsification by public officers under Article 171 of the RPC, perjury under Article 183 of the RPC and Section 3e of Republic Act 3019 (Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act),” he said.
With the approval of the Office of the Ombudsman, preliminary investigations will be conducted to prepare for the filing of cases before the Sandiganbayan.
Remulla said his office is currently reviewing hundreds of flood control projects. He said the first few individuals they plan to file cases against are “open and shut cases” as they are “low-hanging fruits” that are easy to prove.
“Money was released and money was received, but no project was constructed,” he said.
He said the Office of the Ombudsman is currently collating the fraud audit reports submitted by the Commission on Audit and gathering additional evidence to ready the charges before the anti-graft court.
Remulla said he has expressed his request for “continuous trial” with the Sandiganbayan.
He also said there will be more flood-control related cases that involve higher ranking officials in the next few weeks as they are also getting help from the Anti-Money Laundering Council. — Jose Rodel Clapano
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