Ni: Argyll Cyrus B. Geducos
Idinepensa ng Malacañang ang redaction o paglalagay ng itim na tinta sa ilang items sa Statement of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth (SALN) ng mga empleyado ng pamahalaan, at ipinaliwanag na ang sadya nito ay upang protektahan ang kanilang right to privacy.
Kasunod ito ng pagbubunyag ng Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism (PCIJ) na may natuklasang kabuuang 167 redacted details sa 29 SALNs na nirebyu nito.
Ang entries na iniulat na nilalagyan ng mahaba, itim na takip ay tungkol sa acquisition costs o halaga ng personal properties, eksaktong lokasyon ng real properties, at acquisition costs ng real properties.
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Ang SALNs, kabilang ang sa mga miyembro ng Gabinete at iba pang high-ranking officials, ay ini-release ng Malacañang Records Office (MRO) sa PCIJ.
Ayon kay Presidential Spokesperson Ernesto Abella, bagamat pinaninindigan ng Executive Branch ang prinsipyo ng transparency at accountability in public service, ang government workers ay may karapatan pa ring maging pribado.
“There are some who may use the sensitive personal information and other data contained in the SALNs to harass people or commit fraud. We therefore consider security concerns as valid issues,” saad ni Abella sa isang pahayag kahapon.
“With the Data Privacy Act in full force and effectivity this year, data protection officers are obliged to redact items in SALN to protect the right to privacy of all state workers, including cabinet members,” dagdag niya.
Sinabi rin ng opisyal ng Palasyo na ang redaction ng mga detalye sa SALN ay sumusunod sa global data protection regulations.
Kabaligtaran ng ulat ng PCIJ, sinabi ni Abella na ang mga detalyeng initiman sa SALN “are not information on assets, liabilities, and net worth but personal data like family members, home address, among others.”
“SALNs are public documents and to ensure the privacy and security of the official and their family, sensitive information has been blacked out,” sabi ni Abella.
Samantala, hinimok ng Malacañang ang Kongreso na ipasa ang Freedom of Information (FOI) Law dahil ang FOI Executive Order ni Duterte ay nagbibigay-daan naman sa Data Privacy Act.
“The Freedom of Information, which is cited by parties requesting for the SALNs of members of the Cabinet, is an Executive Order and therefore must yield to a higher law. We therefore call on Congress to pass an FOI law due to the obvious limitations of an EO,” sabi ni Abella.
Ayon sa PCIJ, ang redaction ng mga detalye sa SALN ay taliwas sa Freedom of Information Executive Order na pinirmahan ni Pangulong Duterte noong nakaraang taon.
“The practice – which can only be described as a deviation from the FOI EO’s push for transparency – is apparently new,” anang PCIJ. “More importantly, the redacted details included some of the most crucial ones – and at the very heart of the reason why public officials were required by law to file the integrity document in the first place.”
Ayon sa PCIJ, sa SALN ni Pangulong Duterte ay mayroon lamang isang detalyeng initiman: ang address ng Presidente.
Hindi siya tinularan ng kanyang Cabinet officials na maraming detalye sa SALN ang tinakpan.
Sa mga Cabinet official ng administrasyong Duterte, ang December 31, 2016 SALN ng Presidential Communication Operations Office (PCOO) Secretary Martin Andanar ang may pinakamaraming redaction. Ang SALN nito ay iniulat na mayroong 10 redacted details.
Sumusunod kay Andanar sina Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II, Health Secretary Paulyn Ubial, Agriculture Secretary Manny Piñol, Public Works Secretary Mark Villar, Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III, Interior OIC Catalino Cuy, National Security Adviser Hermogenes Esperon, at National Economic and Development Authority Secretary Ernesto Pernia.
