THE Office of the Ombudsman has issued a memorandum circular making Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALNs) of public officials accessible to the public.
Under the still unnumbered circular, all requests for SALNs shall be granted and will be issued in a reasonable period unless:
* The Ombudsman is not the official repository (of the SALN being requested).
* 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.
* The purpose is contrary to law, morals, or public policy.
Information such as the complete home address of the declarant; personal information of unmarried children below 18 years old living in the same household as the declarant; signatures of the declarant and co-declarant; and government-issued identification numbers of the declarant and co declarant will be redacted from the requested SALNs before release to protect the official and his/her family’s privacy.
In a press conference, Assistant Ombudsman Mico Clavano said SALNs can be provided to the requesting parties even without the consent of the concerned public official.
“Transparency is the name of the game... There is no need for consent on the part of the public officer whose SALN is being requested. The only thing that the requesting party needs to show is ID and to make sure that he or she is not a fictitious person,” he said.
The circular also indicates that the Office of the Ombudsman should be provided a copy of publication should the requesting party publish, broadcast or publicly disseminate the document within five calendar days from the date of publication, republication of dissemination. (TPM/SunStar Philippines)