Malacañang castigates Yasay on media gag

Malacañang scored yesterday Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chairman Perfecto Yasay Jr. for proposing curbs on media reporting about the stock exchange.

Yasay insisted, however, that the impositions he was contemplating for news organizations do not constitute a violation of press freedom.

Press Secretary Rodolfo Reyes and Presidential Spokesman Fernando Barican said Yasay's move to impose restrictions on news reports about the bourse was a clear violation of the constitutional guarantee of press freedom in the country.

"I don't know why he (Yasay) has to come up with such an order because we really have to make information available to everyone. Such an order restricts press freedom," Reyes said.

Reyes, himself a former reporter, said Yasay's directive was not sanctioned by the Palace.

"We just have to tell him any restrictions of press freedom is to be condemned," Reyes told The STAR in an interview.

He also said Yasay's move is a cause for concern as it might send the wrong signal to foreign and local investors, instead of promoting investors' confidence in the domestic market.

For his part, Barican said Yasay should furnish Malacañang with the details of his controversial directive before the SEC chief could enforce it.

Yasay said the other day the SEC will require media outlets, including foreign news agencies, to comply with "due diligence" requirements regarding news reports on the stock exchange and publicly listed companies.

As envisioned by Yasay, reporters and columnists would be compelled to identify the sources of their information.

The SEC chief, who has tendered his resignation effective March 25, said journalists would be held accountable for losses suffered by investors resulting from inaccurate reports.

Article III, Section 4 of the Charter provides that "no law shall be passed abridging the freedom of speech, of expression or of the press, or the right of the people to peaceably assemble and petition the government for redress of grievances."

The government can exercise censorship and prior restraint on the local and foreign press only in cases of "clear and present danger."

Meanwhile, lawyer Ruben Almadro, chief of the compliance and surveillance group (CSG) of the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE), assailed a gag order by PSE chairwoman Trinidad Kalaw against him.

Almadro, in a strongly worded letter to Kalaw, deplored "in the strongest possible terms" the directive for him to stop giving statements to the press.

He said Kalaw's directive "inhibits me from defending the integrity of the report against vicious attacks which also undermine my character as a professional and as a person."

He was apparently referring to the PSE report of its investigation of the BW snafu following charges of alleged price manipulation and insider trading.

"This gag order renders me defenseless against the continuing onslaught of Dante Tan's malicious campaign to discredit the CSG Investigation Report and to destroy my person," Almadro said.

In defending the legality of his move, Yasay said he was even encouraging bourse reporters and their sources to disclose their information as promptly as possible.

"But because the public relies on this information, we would like to make sure that information disseminated will preserve the credibility and transparency that we require of the stock market," Yasay said.

He stressed that accurate information is vital because the public makes decisions based on information culled from news reports.

The SEC chief also said he was not restricting news on companies listed in the PSE, but merely wanted to ensure that information coming out is truly consistent with the existing requirements of full disclosure applied to publicly listed companies.

Refusal to comply will compel the SEC to hold individuals or the pertinent organizations accountable, especially if there is damage to the investing public which relied on information that later turned out to be false and inaccurate. -- With Delon Porcalla, Conrado Diaz, Rocel Felix