Keep freedom of info bill rolling, Palace tells House
Members of Congress may proceed with their discussions on the Freedom of Information (FOI) bill without waiting for the Malacañang version of the measure.
Appearing at the House of Representatives to defend next year’s budget of the Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) that he heads, Secretary Herminio Coloma said the Palace was still drafting its version of the bill that it would submit to Congress.
In the meantime, he said, President Aquino would want them to continue their committee hearings on the measure.
“The President supports the principles of the FOI bill. This is important in a democracy, but we are looking for a balance in the exercise of such rights as well as their concomitant responsibilities,” Coloma said in response to a query from Bayan Muna party-list Rep. Teddy Casiño’s on the status of the Malacañang draft.
Coloma said a Malacañang panel was still reviewing the Palace version of the FOI for the President’s approval.
“The President articulated in public that he is in support of the FOI bill. This is just my personal view—I think the President will not mind if Congress proceeds with its work,” Coloma said.
Casiño said Coloma’s statement was “truly disappointing” as it showed the President’s lack of interest in getting the bill passed.
“However, since the President won’t mind, then the House should go ahead and approve the FOI bill,” Casiño said.
“We should not be held hostage to the Palace’s delaying tactics. We should proceed and not wait anymore for that long overdue draft from the Palace that no one wants to sponsor in the first place,” he said.
Eastern Samar Rep. Ben Evardone, chair of the committee on public information, said it would be a waste of time and effort if Congress approved a bill that Malacañang would later reject.
“Maybe what we will approve would be different from their version, so why risk it? If we force this, we will have more problems,” Evardone said.
Quoting reports, Evardone said Malacañang wanted to include a provision in the bill on not giving out information that could jeopardize the national interest.
“If it says national security that’s OK with me, because we can easily identify documents pertinent to national security, but national interest is dangerous because it could be a catch-all phrase,” he said.
Evardone said several lawmakers had filed their versions of the bill which must be consolidated and discussed in the public information committee.
Earlier, Deputy Speaker and Quezon Rep. Lorenzo Tañada III said he hoped the House could pass the bill by October.
The FOI bill would give the public access to most government documents, including contracts, upon a formal request. A government agency could deny a request, but would have to explain why it was declining it.
