IN the spirit of transparency and accountability, Akbayan Partylist Rep. Chel Diokno has filed a resolution directing the Secretary General of the House of Representatives to make the Statements of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth (SALNs) of all House members available to the public.
Diokno filed House Resolution No. 271, together with fellow Akbayan Reform Bloc members Akbayan Party-list Reps. Percival Cendaña, Dadah Kiram Ismula, and Dinagat Islands Rep. Kaka Bag-ao.
“The Constitution is clear: public office is a public trust. If we truly want to weed out corruption, lawmakers must first open themselves to scrutiny,” Diokno said.
“By making our SALNs open to public scrutiny, we are showing the people that we have nothing to hide and everything to account for,” he added.
They filed the resolution amid the ongoing probe into controversial flood control projects, where allegations of corruption, ghost projects, and irregular contracts have surfaced.
“Recent flooding has raised serious concerns about irregularities in the implementation of flood control projects, including allegations of ghost projects, overpriced contracts, questionable bidding practices, and the involvement of relatives or close associates of public officials,” the resolution stated.
The resolution underscored that Republic Act No. 6713 or the Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees mandates that SALNs must be made available for inspection at reasonable hours and for copying after ten working days from the time they are filed.
However, the Office of the Ombudsman restricted public access to the SALNs on file with its office through Memorandum Circular No. 1, s. 2020 issued during the Duterte administration.
To ensure lawmakers’ safety and security, the resolution mandates that sensitive personal information such as addresses, signatures, and ID details should be redacted.
Diokno earlier urged members of the InfraCom investigating the flood control issue to “make a full disclosure of financial, business, or pecuniary interest that may be directly or indirectly affected by any investigation into the government’s past or present flood control projects.”
“I believe we need to assure the public that this investigation will not be a whitewash and that no members of the three committees conducting this investigation have a conflict of interest,” Diokno said.
He also challenged Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) officials involved in the flood control controversy to submit their SALNs and sign bank secrecy waivers to ensure full accountability
