Delayed by sea ruling, FOI order signed this week

MANILA, Philippines – President Duterte was supposed to sign last week the order on Freedom of Information (FOI) in the executive branch. So what delayed the signing?

There were no contentious issues, according to Communications Secretary Martin Andanar, but Duterte was preoccupied with the ruling on the South China Sea row issued by an international arbitral tribunal last Tuesday.

The court in The Hague ruled that China’s expansive “nine-dash-line” maritime claim has no legal basis and that Beijing violated Manila’s sovereign rights in constructing artificial islands in disputed areas.

Andanar told state-run radio station dzRB yesterday that the draft order on the FOI has been finalized and “this week, we will try to have it signed by the President.”

Duterte said the draft EO has been reviewed by chief presidential legal counsel Salvador Panelo and Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea.

“As a matter of fact, it has been finalized,” Andanar said.

Earlier this month, Malacañang officials announced that Duterte would issue an EO requiring agencies under the executive branch to release information about their transactions and projects.

The EO seeks to promote transparency and accountability in government and to encourage greater citizen participation in governance.

The working title of the draft EO is “Operationalizing in the executive branch the people’s constitutional right to information and the state policies of full public disclosure and transparency in the public service and providing guidelines thereof of the freedom of information.”

A law, however, is needed to implement FOI in all branches of government, including the judiciary and legislature.

Right to information bills have been filed since the 12th Congress but they were not enacted partly due to fears that they may be used to destroy reputations.