Clearance for presidential appointees stalled due to backlog

MANILA, Philippines — Presidential appointees covered by the performance review ordered by Malacañang may encounter difficulties meeting deadlines in securing clearances from the Office of the Ombudsman due to backlogs currently being dealt with, Ombudsman Samuel Martires said.

Asked in a radio interview about the ongoing performance review of presidential appointees, Martires said even before the directive, the Office of the Ombudsman was already dealing with a backlog of over 8,000 clearances across all its offices nationwide.

The Presidential Management Staff (PMS) memorandum dated Feb. 2 directs presidential appointees appointed before Feb. 1 last year, including those in government-owned or controlled corporations, to update their personal data and provide proof that they have no pending criminal or administrative cases.

These clearances must come from the Civil Service Commission, (CSC) National Bureau of Investigation, the Office of the Ombudsman and Sandiganbayan.

Under the PMS memorandum, presidential appointees must submit all requirements to the PMS within 30 days of the order’s issuance.

“Because of the requirements of the Commission on Audit and CSC to seek Ombudsman clearance for monetization of leave credits and the number of clearances for early retirement and those due for promotion in the (military and police) and this (PMS memorandum), our backlog has ballooned,” Martires said in an interview over dzRH.

Because of the backlog, he said presidential appointees who applied last week could receive their clearance as early as April 6, overshooting the deadline set by PMS by nearly three months.

“(The deadline) is not our problem, that’s the problem of the appointees and the PMS. We cannot force ourselves to issue clearances just for these requirements,” Martires said.

“We can’t do anything about it, we cannot give them special treatment… I will not give special treatment even for friends if this is the only reason, because we’re prioritizing those due for retirement and promotion because that’s what’s important,” he added.

The Ombudsman also stressed that issuing clearances is a lot of work because verifiers check pending cases.

Martires said the PMS needs to iron out possible complications brought about by the requirements, including the deadline.

“What will they do if the presidential appointee is unable to comply? Will they be removed from service?” he added.

Aside from this, he said PMS needs to clarify “which” presidential appointees are covered.

“Does this include the Judicial and Bar Council, whose members are appointed by the President but confirmed by the Commission on Appointments? Career officials? Those with terms of office? Those who can only be removed from office with just cause like the commissioners of the National Labor Relations Commission?” he added.

While Malacañang has already denied that the performance review was a way of purging critics of President Marcos, Martires said presidential appointees who are non-career officials and appointed before Marcos should just resign and let department heads decide whether to let them stay or leave.