THE PHILIPPINE Center for Investigative Journalism on Thursday launched the results of the global survey on the state of transparency in the Philippines, where the country’s score slipped a few notches.
The Open Budget Survey for 2012 is produced every two years by the International Budget Partnership in order to encourage more openness and transparency in the budgeting process of governments. The PCIJ has been serving as the country researcher for the Philippines since 2006.
In this short video-graphic, PCIJ Research Director Karol Ann Ilagan summarizes the main points of the OBS results.The graphic was produced by PCIJ’s Rowena Caronan.
The print version of the OBS results may be read here.
So said champions of the long-delayed Freedom of Information (FOI) bill as the House of Representatives again failed on Wednesday to tackle the measure on the floor.
Legislators supporting the FOI have been waiting for three days for a chance to sponsor the bill on the floor, as the House calendar counts down to the election recess. The chamber adjourns on February 8 for an extended election break, leaving only six more days for FOI proponents to make a fast break.
However, Wednesday’s session went down the drain as well after the House leadership failed to mollify Davao del Sur Rep Marc Douglas Cagas IV. Cagas has been threatening to raise the absence of a quorum since Tuesday in order to block the sending of a newly signed law creating the province of Davao Occidental to the House archives. Douglas, one of the original proponents of the law, has now become its oppositor.
Unfortunately, the FOI bill has become an indirect victim of Cagas’ crusade against the Davao Occidental law. Tuesday’s session was also aborted by Cagas’ threats to question the lack of quorum.
An hour into Wednesday’s session, Cagas took to the floor to raise a question as to “whether there were enough warm bodies” in the chamber. House leaders took this to mean that Cagas was again threatening to raise the lack of quorum in the chamber, as there were less than 50 Congressmen present. Majority Floor leader Neptali Gonzales II rushed to talk to Cagas as the session was suspended.
When session resumed, Cagas appeared to have been mollified at first. Cagas again took the floor, saying he had already conferred with the Majority Floor Leader, and that they had come to an agreement. Cagas however again gave broad hints that there was no quorum in the chamber.
“After conferring with the Majority Leader, although his body is not that warm to warm all of us here, I agree with his (suggestion.)” Cagas said.
However, after a few more speeches by legislators on local concerns, FOI advocates watching from the gallery were surprised when the session was adjourned until Monday the following week.
Rep. Teddy Baguilat and Walden Bello, both champions of the FOI, said Cagas had refused to back down. In his discussion with Gonzalez, Cagas only agreed to allow local concerns to be taken up by the chamber. However, the legislator threatened to question the lack of quorum if any other measure was taken up by Congress during the session, including the FOI.
House Committee on Public Information chairman Ben Evardone, who was set to deliver the sponsorship speech for the FOI bill, said Cagas was apparently offended by media reports that blamed him for the failure of the chamber to tackle the FOI the day before. Media had quoted pro-FOI legislators as saying on Tuesday that they were blindsided by Cagas’ “parochial” concerns.
In addition, the Cagas patriarch, Davao Sur Governor Douglas Cagas, had himself attended the session to make sure that his son blocks any move to bring the Davao Occidental law to the congressional archive.
Curiously, Baguilat said, Cagas told FOI proponents that they could begin discussion of the measure on Monday, Jan. 28, as he would not be attending the session on that day.
Baguilat and Bello were stumped by this turn of events, as both were already expecting a tight race for the FOI when Congress resumed session last Jan. 22. With the new developments and the three day delay, Baguilat said only a miracle would save the FOI in the 15th Congress.
Barring a miracle, the only other thing that could save the FOI, Baguilat said, would be a certification from Malacanang that the FOI is an urgent measure. However, given the lukewarm support of the Palace to the measure, Baguilat said that a Presidential endorsement would also be a miraculous event in itself.
Bello for his part said it was also unfortunate that Congress could not muster a quorum for the last two days, leaving the chamber hostage to Cagas’ threats. If all the Congressmen had only attended the session as they were supposed to, Bello said, Cagas would not have any ammunition with which to block measures on the floor.
There were less than 30 Congressmen present on the floor when the session began at 4 p.m. Wednesday. By the time the session adjourned at around 6 p.m. there were less than 50 present.
Interestingly, opponents of the FOI had earlier delayed the bill at the committee level by insisting that the committee stop hearings on the bill at 4 p.m. sharp because of a rule that requires all Congressmen to attend sessions.
Right to Know Right Now! lead convenor Nepomuceno Malaluan said the FOI advocates were extremely disappointed with the unnecessary delays in the passage of the bill. Malaluan said that advocates were hoping to the last minute that Congress would deliver on its promise to pass the measure before going on a break. With the delayed timetable, Malaluan said proponents were now preparing for the eventuality of another campaign, this time with the 16th Congress in mind.
Malaluan also expressed disappointment with the failure of President Benigno S. Aquino III to make a firmer stand on the FOI despite his earlier assurances of support for the bill.
PROPONENTS OF THE Freedom of Information (FOI) bill are still hoping for a fastbreak for the long-delayed measure as Congress resumed session with only eight days to go before the chamber goes on an extended election break.
Deputy Speaker Erin Tanada, one of the principal authors of the bill, said Speaker Feliciano Belmonte had not expressed any apprehension or opposition over the measure in a meeting prior to the session. Tanada said the Speaker said the FOI’s fate would now depend on whether the bill’s proponents could muster a quorum when the bill comes to a vote. Tanada takes this to mean that the Speaker is in support of the measure that has remained stuck in Congress for the last 14 years.
In fact, Tanada said he is hoping that the measure could be passed on second reading by next week, with barely enough time for a third and final reading before Feb. 8, when Congress goes on extended break.
The Senate had passed its version of the FOI on third and final reading last year.
The House Rules Committee had committed to have the measure brought before the floor today through a sponsorship speech by House Public Information chairman Ben Evardone.
Rep. Walden Bello of the Akbayan Party-List says FOI proponents are confident that the measure has enough support on the floor. Bello pointed out that 117 legislators had signed a statement of support for the FOI late last year, when the measure was still stuck at the committee level. Bello says they are confident that the bill would still have the support of these same Congressmen.
However, Bello acknowledged that their cautious optimism is premised on the idea that no one tries to delay proceedings on the House floor through procedures or technicalities. With only eight days to go before the break, FOI advocates have been counting the days with a mixture of dread and realistic optimism.
Tanada said there are a few more potentially contentious issues that would likely be discussed and debated on in the session floor. These include the Right of Reply provision; provisions on exemptions due to national security concerns, executive privilege, and a proposal to include the private sector in the FOI.
This, according to members of the Right to Know Right Now Coalition, is the crime that Speaker Feliciano Belmonte and Majority Floor Leader Neptali Gonzalez III should be held accountable after Congress again failed to tackle the Freedom of Information bill.
In a statement released to the media after coalition members walked out of today’s Congress session, the coalition said it was holding the House leadership primarily responsible if the FOI again fails to make it through the legislative mill.
Coalition lead convenor Nepomuceno Malaluan said there was more than enough time for Congress to tackle the bill if only the House leadership committed itself to exercise true transparency and accountability. For example, Malaluan said that even without an outright endorsement by President Benigno S. Aquino III of the bill, the chamber was well within its rights to mark the bill as urgent.
Malaluan said that so far, Congress has only exhibited a clear “pattern of delays” that betrays the true position of Congress when it comes to transparency.
The Coalition statement follows:
HOUSE FAILS THE PEOPLE YET AGAIN
We express our indignation over the House leadership’s lack of responsiveness on the FOI bill.
We came to the session today anticipating the sponsorship of the FOI committee report, only to be frustrated again with its non-inclusion in the Order of Business.
The Committee Report has been referred to the Rules Committee in the session last December 18 yet, and given the lack of material time for the bill’s consideration, we were expecting that the House leadership would not let a session day pass that the FOI bill is not tackled.
Today’s non-inclusion of the FOI bill in the Order of Business, even for just its sponsorship, is just the latest in the pattern of delays that has beset the FOI bill in the 15th Congress.
Should the FOI bill meet a redux of its tragic fate in the 14th Congress, the members of the Right to Know, Right Now! Coalition would have no choice but to hold Speaker Belmonte and Majority Leader Gonzalez responsible for command negligence.
It will be recalled that Rep. Ben Evardone, chair of the House Committee on Public Information, had on several instances earlier reneged on his commitment to hold committee hearings on the FOI bill.
That early, FOI advocates have sought Belmonte’s intervention and action, but he chose only to ignore, or play ignorant and indifferent to our appeals. As Evardone hemmed and hawed, legislators in favor of the FOI bill launched an initiative to use Rule IX, Section 37, par. 1 of the Rules of the House of Representatives, which states:
“Regular and Special Meetings. The committees shall hold regular meetings at least twice a month. Special meetings may be held by the committee which may be called by the chairperson or by one-fourth (1/4) of its Members. Provided, that the Members shall be notified in writing and, as far as practicable, through electronic mail indicating therein the date, time, place and agenda of the meeting.”
Led by Akbayan Representatives Walden Bello and Kaka Bag-ao, the group was able to secure the signatures of more than the eight Committee members needed to put the rule in effect.
Belmonte, however, prevailed upon the group to allow Evardone to call the hearing instead, which allowed Evardone to further delay committee action.
Belmonte could make up for lost time by acting decisively on the FOI bill on te FOI bill in the nine session days beginning today. Allowing its sponsorship today would have been an indication of a new resolve on FOI.
Speaker Belmonte has failed us again.
Still, consistent with our continuing demand and assertion of our right to information, we will continue to closely monitor the House action on FOI up to the last session day on February 6.
Advocates of the Freedom of Information (FOI) bill still pending in Congress walked out during the resumption of regular session in the House of Representatives after the lower chamber again failed to calendar the measure for floor debates.
House leaders said the measure will be taken up on the floor beginning tomorrow (Tuesday Jan. 22), leaving just eight remaining session days before Congress adjourns for the long election break.
FOI advocates have been demanding quick Congress action on the FOI beginning today, as there are only nine session days remaining before the chamber goes on extended break on Feb. 8. After that, the 15th Congress will only resume session for three days in June this year, during which time it wraps up sessions.
The measure’s principal author took the floor Monday afternoon to ask the House leadership if the FOI would finally be taken up on the floor. To this, Deputy Majority Leader Bolet Banal responded that the Committee on Rules had decided to calendar the measure the next day, Tuesday.
At this point, some 70 members of the Right to Know Right Now Coalition immediately stood up and walked out of the gallery, with some chanting “FOI, FOI, Ipasa!” (Pass the FOI!)
The FOI advocates continued to chant as they walked down to the lobby, even as congress security men tried to usher them out into the driveway. The demonstration continued in front of Congress as chanting FOI advocates spilled out into the driveway, to the surprise of some congressmen who were arriving late.
Right to Know Right Now lead convenor Nepomuceno Malaluan said the group is sorely disappointed that the Congress leadership is still dribbling the FOI despite the widespread calls for its passage. Malaluan said that if the House leadership was really interested in transparency and accountability, the measure would have been immediately calendared and rushed through the legislative mill.
Malaluan said that the bill could easily be passed in the remaining eight session days if only the House leadership would put its shoulders behind the measure. However, if Congress is really not bent on passing the bill, no number of days would be enough to see the bill through.
For his part, House Committee on Public Information chairman Ben Evardone said he had warned FOI proponents that there were still many contentious provisions in the measure that need to be discussed on the floor.
Evardone says he knows of several Congressmen who have personally told him of their concerns with the FOI measure. These Congressmen, Evardone said, are certain to block passage of the FOI until their concerns have been addressed.
These include Reps. Pedro Romualdo and Rodolfo Antonino. Romualdo had successfully blocked the ratification of an earlier version of the FOI bill during the 14th Congress by raising the issue of a quorum in the chamber. For his part, Antonino had tried to block the FOI’s approval in the committee level by insisting on the inclusion of a Right of Reply (ROR) provision, which would require media agencies to provide equal time or space to government officials who feel slighted by news stories about them.
At the same time, the Makabayan block of legislators allied with the party-list group Bayan Muna has withdrawn authorship of the FOI, saying that the measure now pending before Congress has been heavily watered down by Malacanang so as to make it ineffective and even anti-transparency.
Bayan Muna Rep. Teddy Casino said the seven-member block was withdrawing its support for the measure until the bill takes on a more acceptable form. Casino said that in its present form, the bill only serves to institutionalize exemptions that would allow government officials to block access to information.
In fact, the members of the Makabayan block said the Freedom of Information bill has now become the Freedom of Exemption bill because of the long list of exemptions granted to government officials. Among the points of concern raised by the Makabayan block are the provision for executive privilege, as well as the exemption that allows police and military officials to keep information confidential if they think it would interfere with the detection and suppression of criminal activity.
