Upon request, SALNs available in an hour

MANILA, Philippines - Obtaining a copy of a government official’s statement of assets, liabilities and net worth (SALN) may soon be as easy as ordering from a fast-food outlet.

The Office of the Ombudsman, based on information on its new and improved website (www.ombudsman.gov.ph), can make the document available within an hour, especially to journalists and students.

Students or members of the media wishing to get a copy of the document may simply visit the Ombudsman’s office on Agham Road in Quezon City during office hours – even during lunch break – and file a request with the Public Assistance Bureau. Requests made by other groups or individuals may have to be approved by the agency’s Office of Legal Affairs.

Applicants are required to present two government-issued identification cards like a passport or driver’s license, a student ID if the requester is a student, an authorization letter and/or Special Power of Attorney for representatives, and a valid Community Tax Certificate.

The Office of the Ombudsman, headed by retired Supreme Court justice Conchita Carpio-Morales, said the one-hour processing time applies only to SALN filed from 2003 up to the present.

The anti-graft agency is the official depository of the SALNs of officials including the president, the vice president, and the heads of constitutional bodies like the Commission on Elections, the Commission on Audit, and the Civil Service Commission.