Palace to support efforts for FOI approval in 16th Congress

MANILA, Philippines - Malacañang will support renewed efforts by advocates of the shelved Freedom of Information bill to have it approved in the incoming 16th Congress, a Palace spokesperson said over the weekend.

“We will have no problem with that. In fact, we have our own version of the FOI bill that we have submitted to our allies both in the House of Representatives and the Senate,” deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said in her regular weekend interview over state-run radio dzRB.

Valte said they were in fact grateful to lawmakers who have accommodated several provisions which they want incorporated in the bill.

Re-elected Ifugao Rep. Teddy Brawner Baguilat, one of the co-authors in the House, has vowed to reintroduce and push for the approval of the FOI bill in the incoming 16th Congress.

“We should make FOI a priority in the next Congress as it is crucial in strengthening the tuwid na daan (straight path) advocacy. It is crucial in the administration’s campaign against graft and corruption,” he said.

Baguilat, a member of the ruling Liberal Party, said with more party members winning seats in both the House and the Senate, major reform bills such as the FOI would have a greater chance of approval.

“The FOI bill seeks to make it easier for people and the media to access public documents, especially those related to bidding of government projects as well as expenditures,” he said.

“This way, there will be greater transparency in government affairs and the way taxpayers’ money is spent,” he said.

Baguilat added that the eventual enactment of a law on freedom of information should be part of the administration’s good governance legacy.

The Ifugao lawmaker also vowed to work for the approval of other reform bills that the outgoing Congress failed to pass.

These include the proposed National Land Use Act, alternative mining bill, anti-discrimination bill, forest management bill, and the draft Maritime Code.

Baguilat said he would also pursue autonomy for the Cordillera region, which includes his province of Ifugao.