MANILA, Philippines – The technical working group (TWG) formed by the House of Representatives public information committee on Tuesday approved the consolidated version of the freedom of information (FOI) bill. 
In a text message, Akbayan Rep. Barry Gutierrez said the authors of the bill met before their TWG meeting Tuesday to come up with the consensus bill on FOI.
He said there was no objection to the approval of the bill.
“(We) met informally before the TWG to agree on a common consensus bill,” Gutierrez said.
The FOI bill, which ensures transparency and accountability in government transactions and data, continues to languish in the lower chamber even as the Senate has approved its version.
The TWG was formed to consolidate the different versions of the bill.
The bill would need to be approved at the committee level first before it advances to the plenary for second reading.
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