This document discusses the status of proposed legislation on freedom of information (FOI) and free and open source software (FOSS) in the Philippines. It provides the following key points:
- President Duterte signed an executive order on FOI in July 2016, but it contains many exceptions to disclosure.
- There are two relevant bills in Congress - House Bill 334 which aims to strengthen FOI access, and House Bill 3612 which promotes FOSS use. Both bills are currently pending in committees.
- Advocates are urged to write letters and petitions in support of passing these bills into law to strengthen transparency and digital rights in the country. Public discussions and social media campaigns can also help build support
3. May EO on FOI
Pinirmahan
ni Pangulong
Duterte ang
Executive
Order on FOI,
with exceptions
and affirming
the right to
privacy noong
July 23, 2016
4. For the Executive Branch of
government:
• to enable every Filipino access to
information, official records, and other
public documents
• national government and all its offices,
departments, bureaus, offices, and
instrumentatlities, including
government-owned or -controlled
corporations, and state universities and
colleges
5. "Every Filipino shall
have access to
information, official
records, public
records and to
documents and
papers pertaining to
official acts,
transactions or
decisions, as well as
to government
research data used
as basis for public-
development"
PCOO Sec. Andanar:
“The person who requests
for information shall write
a letter to the authorized
personnel that is duly
assigned by the head of
the agency. The head of
the agency shall review
the letter, and if there [are]
no questions with the
request, then the person
assigned should give the
information not longer
than 15 days.”
6. FOI for the Executive Branch of
government:
• requests for access to information are free of
charge unless the agency requires to
“reimburse necessary costs, including actual costs
of reproduction and copying of the information
requested, subject to existing rules and regulations
• Failure to comply with the provisions of this
Order may be a ground for administrative
and disciplinary sanctions against any erring
public officer or employee
7. PROCEDURE
Records Officer
(RO)
FOI Decision
Maker (DM)
• first evaluate the info being
requested, identify FOI decision
maker (DM) from the
appropriate agency, and notify
him of the request
• conduct an initial screening of
the request and provide initial
decision; ensure that the
complete information requested
is submitted to the RO within 10
days
8. • transmit the documents to the
requesting party within 15 days.
The RO may request additional
time to complete the request
but this cannot exceed 20
working days.
• In case of denial, a requesting
party can make an appeal to
the PCO Central Appeals and
Review Committee, which shall
be composed of three officials
designed by the
Communications Secretary
Records Officer
(RO)
Requesting party
10. ... at 166 lahat!
In Section 4 of the EO--
“Access to information shall be denied
when the information falls under any of
the exceptions enshrined in the
Constitution, existing law or
jurisprudence”
11. Some questionable exceptions
from the Draft FOI Manual are
the following:
– Non-disclosure of SALN;
– Legislative Journals;
– Exceptions as general as “Such information, record or
document comprises drafts of decisions, orders, rulings,
policy decisions, memoranda, etc.”
– “Government officials cannot be compelled to
prepare lists and detailed reports on how congressional
funds were disbursed”;
– Confidentiality of information known to a public official
or employee by reason of his office;
12. ...questionable exceptions in FOI
– The information requested consists of drafts of
orders, resolutions, decisions, memoranda or
audit reports by any executive, administrative,
regulatory, constitutional, judicial or quasi-
judicial body in the exercise of their regulatory
audit and adjudicatory function;
– Court records, including pleadings, and other
documents filed by litigants are confidential;
– Documents submitted to the Government
Electronic Procurement System;
13. ...questionable exceptions in FOI
– Proprietary information disclosed to the Head of
Agency in an unsolicited proposal under the BOT Law;
– Confidential information involving investment
guarantees;
– Any confidential info supplied by the contractor to
DENR or to the government pursuant to the Mining Act
of 1995;
– Secret of private individual known by public officer by
reason of his or her office;
– Confidentiality of information acquired by COMELEC
officials
17. The key features of HB334
• rationalize the harsh exemptions provided
for in the 1989 Rules Implementing the Code
of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public
Officials and Employees (RA 6713)
promulgated by the Civil Service
Commission and to provide effective means
for redress of violations of the right
• absolute and mandatory access to matters
of official information, public concern and
public interest.
18. HB334 addresses the following
issues:
• elimination of hardly comprehensible
and excessively broad jargon of
exemptions to the exercise of the right
to official information
• simplify the limitations to “Except when
it is clear that the purpose of the
examination is to abet or promote or
commit crime or wrongdoing or to
engage in sheer and idle curiosity.”
20. 1. Official acts of public officers done in the pursuit of their
official functions;
2. Judicial or quasi-judicial decisions or orders as well as records
of court cases in whatever stage, and policy decisions of
public officers, boards, commissions or tribunals;
3. Transactions, contracts and agreements, whether the
government is a nominal or active contracting or counter-
party, including negotiations or definite propositions of the
government leading to the consummation of the transactions,
contracts and agreements;
4. Government research data used as basis for policy
development, enactment of statutes, rules and regulations,
and execution of transactions, contracts and agreements,
whether the government is a nominal or active contracting or
counter-party, including negotiations or definite propositions
of the government leading to the consummation of the
transactions, contracts and
agreements;
21. 5. Laws, policies, rules and procedure, work
programs, projects and performance
targets, performance reports;
6. Public and private writings coming into
the hands of public officers in
connection with their official functions;
7. Books of account, ledgers, and other
documents of whatever nature or
character used as basis for applications,
reports or returns or other documents
regardless of nature or character
submitted to the government; and
8. All other information required by law to
be accessible to the public.
22. ANG HB334 AY PARA SA LAHAT
NG SANGAY NG GOBYERNO
NASAAN NA ITO NGAYON?
• House Committee on Public
Information
• 1st reading sa October 11, 2016, 930AM
24. AN ACT PROMOTING THE
DEVELOPMENT AND USE OF
FREE/OPEN SOURCE SOFTWARE
(FOSS) IN THE PHILIPPINES,
AMENDING RA 8293 OTHERWISE
KNOWN AS THE 'INTELLECTUAL
PROPERTY CODE OF THE
PHILIPPINES', PROVIDING
PENALTIES THEREOF, AND FOR
OTHER PURPOSES
25.
26. Unlike proprietary software, FOSS is
• cheap (in fact, most FOSS are distributed free to
the public by their own developers)
• flexible and development-friendly (FOSS source
codes are accessible to consumers who may
study, modify and customize the software)
• interoperable (FOSS adheres to open standards
and are meant to work across various platforms
and protocols), and
• safe (the opening of the source codes and the
use of open standards have allowed hundreds of
thousands of users around the globe to serve as a
virtual research and development team,
providing patches and solutions to bugs and
glitches in real time over the internet).
27. NASAAN NA ANG HOUSE
BILL 3612 NGAYON?
• Pending with the House Committee on
ICT since September 21, 2016
29. ANONG PWEDENG GAWIN?
• Patuloy na itutulak
ni Rep. Zarate at ng
BAYAN MUNA na
dinggin at maipasa
ang HB 334 (FOI) at
HB 3612 (FOSS)
• Pero kailangan ng
pagkilos ng FOSS
advocates at
freedom of
information fighters!
30. Kailangan maitulak ang mga
mababatas at si Pangulong
Duterte na aprubahan ang
FOI at FOSS
31. Ipakita natin ang nagkakaisang tinig para
sa kahalagahan ng mga panukalang batas
na FOI at FOSS
1. Sumulat o magpetisyon sa mga
Kongresista at Senador at kay
Pangulong Duterte para iprayoritisa ang
pagpasa ng batas sa FOI at FOSS.
Ipadala ang kopya ng petisyon sa
headquarters ng Bayan Muna o sa
tanggapan ni Rep. Zarate sa Kongreso
34. Ipakita natin ang nagkakaisang
tinig para sa kahalagahan ng mga
panukalang batas na FOI at FOSS
2. Maglunsad ng mga discussions o
talakayan para mas mapataas ang
pagkaunawa at pagkakaisa sa ating
laban para sa genuine FOI at FOSS
35. Ipakita natin ang nagkakaisang tinig para
sa kahalagahan ng mga panukalang batas
na FOI at FOSS
3. Sumulat sa diyaryo, tumawag sa
radio, magpost sa FB at social media
para lumakas pa ang ating
panawagan/kampanya
36. Ipakita natin ang nagkakaisang
tinig para sa kahalagahan ng mga
panukalang batas na FOI at FOSS
4. Sumama sa mga pagkilos para sa
pagpasa ng mga batas sa FOI at FOSS.
