Robredo says House’s ‘strict’ rules on SALN access ‘unjust’

MANILA, Philippines — Vice President Leni Robredo on Sunday criticized the strict rules on the disclosure of the statement of assets, liabilities and net worth of members of the House of Representatives.

Robredo said lawmakers must have forgotten the purpose of the SALN when they approved House Resolution No. 2467 which imposes stricter rules on how the public can access the document. She lamented how it is unjust for other public officials.

“Gusto bang sabihin mas espesyal sila kaysa sa ibang mga public servants? (Do they want to say that they are more special than other public servants?),” Robredo said.

“Gusto bang sabihin na mas kailangan silang maprotektahan kumpara sa ordinaryong naninilbihan sa pamahalaan. Bakit kailangang itago? (Do they want to say that they should be more protected compared to ordinary public servants? Why do they have to hide it?),” she added.

The vice president reminded the solons that SALNs were required as public officials have an obligation to be transparent with the public.

Robredo made the comment after members of the House of Representatives last Wednesday adopted HR 2467 which requires the approval of the plenary before issuing access to a solon’s SALN.

The resolution states that requests for copies of SALNs of House members, secretariat officers and other employees are to be filed with the office of the chamber’s secretary general in a prescribed form.

It also has a condition that requesting party will be required to pay P300 for every copy of SALN. Requesting a copy of SALN of the 300 House members will require a fee totaling to P90,000.

Aside from the fee, the resolution also obliges the requesting party to provide all information about them, the purpose of the request and interest sought to be served and, if applicable, the justification for access to previous SALNs.

Meanwhile, members of the media who wish to secure a copy of the SALN will be required to provide an affidavit of affiliation and certification from the news organization proving that the one requesting is a legitimate practitioner.

Robredo said these new rules on the release of SALNs only diminish the public’s trust on lawmakers as she emphasized the need for transparency and accountability.

“Sana mabago pa dahil malaking dagok na naman 'yun sa mga initiatives natin for transparency and accountability (I hope this changes because this is a big challenge to the initiatives for transparency and accountability),” she said.

House Majority Leader Fredenil Castro earlier said the strict rules on requesting for SALNs actually made access to such documents by the media and the public “simpler.”

READ: ‘Strict SALN rules make access easier’

“The days of tedious and expensive way of seeking copies of SALN of lawmakers are over. Requesting parties no longer have to ask the courts to issue a subpoena. They merely follow simple procedure provided under Resolution No. 2467,” Castro said. — Rosette Adel