House OKs Freedom of Information bill

MANILA, Philippines - The House committee on public information finally approved yesterday the Freedom of Information (FOI) bill despite attempts by some lawmakers to block it in a bid to include the controversial right of reply provisions.

The panel, chaired by Eastern Samar Rep. Ben Evardone, approved House Bill 43 with a vote of 17-3 with one abstention after nearly two hours of debate.

The bill - touted to be a major transparency and anti-corruption measure - will now be referred to the plenary, which the authors and supporters admit would be a major hurdle due to time constraints and lukewarm support from Malacañang.

“Thankfully, the bill has been approved by the committee and will now be transmitted to the plenary. We may be running short of time but if the public will closely watch and monitor, anything is possible, and everything will be doable,” Aurora Rep. Juan Edgardo Angara, one of the authors of the bill, said.

“From day one, I have been saying that the passage of this proposed measure will signal the beginning of the realization of our quest for good governance, transparency and accountability,” he added.

 “By then, the days of the corrupt would have surely become a thing of the past,” he added.

Deputy Speaker and Quezon Rep. Lorenzo Tañada III, principal author of the measure, expressed elation over the passage but warned the bill could face tougher opposition in the plenary.

“The total victory is when the FOI bill is enacted,” Tañada said, noting there are only 11 session days left before Congress goes on a Christmas break and election fever sets in.

Angara also warned the committee approval would be “a hollow victory” if it falls short of plenary approval given the short time left to discuss the merits of the bill.

He said anti-corruption statutes could not be fully enforced if there are no disclosure and information statutes, as well as laws to protect whistleblowers in government.

The voting came only two weeks after Akbayan party-list Rep. Walden Bello made a motion for the committee to vote on the measure that was strongly opposed by Nueva Ecija Rep. Rodolfo Antonino, who insisted on inserting a right of reply provision.

“It (FOI) gives the media widespread, unbridled access to information,” Antonino told the panel, adding the measure has been influenced by media groups like the Philippine Press Institute (PPI).

Bayan Muna party-list Rep. Teodoro Casiño however said the FOI is really for the public and not the media.

The debate heated up when Antonino castigated Bello, Tañada and Ifugao Rep. Teddy Baguilat.

“You can time it all you want,” Antonino told Bello when the latter pointed out he was already exceeding the time limit for him to speak.