High cost photocopying in office of Ombudsman draws flak

THE huge increase in photocopying and other fees at the anti-graft office has stakeholders complaining.

Overall Deputy Ombudsman Orlando Casimiro ordered the increase of photocopying rate from P1- P5 per page last Feb. 7, 2013.

Certification fee has also been hiked from P15 to P100.

Certified true copies was also increased from P4 to P10 per page.

“To recover the costs of the reproduction of records and other documents, all offices are hereby authorized to collect photocopying and authentication fees,” he said.

The cost of photocopying in the Ombudsman is way higher than the rates at the Palace of Justice and the Cebu City Hall which is P1.50 per page.

Whistleblower Crisologo Saavedra was dismayed with the new rates being implemented in the Ombudsman Visayas office.

He said he will send a letter to Casimiro to air his grievances.

“They are charging too much. That will discourage people from cooperating with the Ombudsman,” Saavedra said.

Also affected by the increase are journalists covering the anti-graft office.

To cope with the high cost of reproducing documents, journalists were contented with taking photographs of the documents using their smart phones.

There were also times when justice beat reporters shared the expenses of photocopying the official documents by assigning one of them to request the reproduction, and then later on have it reproduced outside at just P1 per page.  /Reporter Ador Vincent Mayol