Lacson bills strip officials of bank secrecy

MANILA, Philippines — Sen. Panfilo Lacson has filed two bills that seek to prevent government officials and employees from hiding ill-gotten wealth by stripping them of their secrecy rights under existing laws on bank and foreign currency deposits.

Lacson said he filed the two bills as part of his advocacy against graft and corruption.

In Senate Bill 38, titled “An Act Further Strengthening the Secrecy of Bank Deposits Law, Amending for the Purpose RA 1405 Otherwise Known as the Secrecy of Bank Deposits Law as Amended,” Lacson cited the 1987 Constitution which states that “public office is a public trust” and thus should not be used for personal enrichment.

“This bill seeks to exclude government officials and employees, whether elected or appointed, from the coverage of the Bank Secrecy Law to equip government authorities with the necessary tools to effectively investigate and prosecute those who misuse public office for personal gain,” Lacson said.

The bill seeks to amend Section 2 of RA 1405 which would add a crucial exception to bank secrecy: “When the depositor is an elective or appointive official or employee of the Republic of the Philippines, including the officers and members of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, the Philippine National Police and all members of the uniformed services and officers and employees of government-owned and controlled corporations and their subsidiaries.”

Lacson’s second bill, “An Act Further Strengthening the Foreign Currency Deposit Law, Amending for the Purpose RA 6426 Otherwise Known as the Foreign Currency Deposit Act of the Philippines as Amended,” also excludes government officials and employees from bank confidentiality, this time on foreign currency accounts.

“The proposed bill seeks to amend the law by establishing a clear and narrowly defined exception: public officials and employees shall not be entitled to the confidentiality of foreign currency deposits. This amendment aligns the statute with constitutional mandates on transparency and accountability, as well as with international standards for financial oversight and integrity,” Lacson said.