Poe willing to write PNoy to push for FOI

MANILA, Philippines – For 4 years now, President Benigno Aquino III left out the Freedom of Information (FOI) bill in his State of the Nation Address. But the measure’s new champion in the Senate is willing to convince the President to give it an extra push.

Sen Grace Poe said she is open to talk with and write to the President to find out his concerns about the bill and ask him to certify it urgent.

The surprise frontrunner in the May polls, Poe is the new chairperson of the committee on public information and mass media, which has jurisdiction over the measure. 

She filed a resolution to start deliberations, calling FOI “a crucial framework to promote investments and for meaningful implementation of the twin principles of accountability and transparency in the bureaucracy.”

In the weekly news forum in the Senate, Poe said before writing the President, she will first talk to the different stakeholders and the Presidential Communication Operations Office (PCOO).

“I could eventually do that, to write him but I won’t do that until I hear all sides. That includes the side of the President. Because to say here are my concerns, A, B, C, for me to justify an urgent bill, I would have to say don’t worry about A, B, C here’s what we think about it,” Poe said on Thursday, July 25.

Poe said she acknowledged that bills the President does not certify as urgent or prioritize usually languish in Congress.

“The focus I want to give attention to obviously is the side of Malacañang. There’s no denying it. It’s not their priority and they filed their own version. I would like to see where the concern is coming from. The executive is a significant part of this whole process. The people had given President PNoy an overwhelming mandate. We have to take into consideration what the President thinks about it,” she said.

Despite the administration’s thrust on transparency, Poe said a law is needed to institutionalize its efforts.

“I think it’s a safety [mechanism] for us especially in 2016, we will have a new administration. Better to have guarantee we have access to information …. Delikado ito kasi pag-alis ng PNoy administration.” (There’s a danger if we don’t pass this before the end of the PNoy administration.)

Poe said she will also consult with her counterparts in the House of Representatives, the chamber that failed to pass the measure in the past two congresses. In the 14^th Congress, the Senate already ratified the FOI bill and passed it in the 15^th Congress.

As committee chairperson, Poe reiterated that she will ensure that national security will not be compromised in the FOI bill and it will not be used as an excuse to deny requests for information.

She again stressed that she is against the right of reply provision, which requires news organizations to give space to sources affected by FOI requests.

Senators Teofisto “TG” Guingona III, Alan Peter Cayetano, Loren Legarda and JV Ejercito filed different versions of the bill.

The Right to Know, Right Now! Coalition also filed what they called the People’s FOI bill through a direct initiative.

Like movies, classify NGOs receiving pork

Poe also echoed calls for more stringent rules on the use of the pork barrel or the Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) following the alleged P10-billion scam involving at least 5 senators and 23 congressmen.

READ: Admin solons linked to pork barrel scam 

The former censors chief suggested a classification scheme for the non-government organizations (NGOs) receiving pork barrel after reports exposed that bogus NGOs got funding.

“Basta accredited ng department na ‘yun na NGO, mailalagay na doon. Magkaroon ng stringent na screening ng NGOs. Let’s say 50% for livelihood, ganito lang for health, ‘di na pwede for other things. Class A NGOs, first year, second year, third year. Parang sa FDCP (Film Development Council of the Philippines) Rated A, Rated B, Rated C.” 

(The NGOs should be accredited by the departments. There should be stringent screening of the NGOs and limit the use of pork to say 50% for livelihood, this percent for health. Then like in the FDCP, classify and rate the NGOs.)

Senators receive P200 million a year in PDAF while House members get P70 million.

Poe said her pork barrel will be used to fund a free lunch program in public schools while her bill on the project is still pending.

She explained that a law is needed to institutionalize the program, saying that projects like the Nutribun during the Marcos administration were not carried through.

The senator also called on the health, education, social welfare and agriculture departments to study the diet of Filipino children to ensure that they will be given hypoallergenic food.

DOJ can handle Ozamiz killings probe

Besides the committee on public information, Poe is also the new head of the committee on public order and dangerous drugs.

Poe said she will be prudent in investigating incidents of crime and alleged rubouts. She said she is not keen on investigating the alleged Ozamiz rubout involving the killing of two gang members in police custody.

Yet Sen Gregorio Honasan II, the former chairman of the committee, filed a resolution calling on the Senate to investigate alleged human rights violations that the police are committing.

Honasan cited the alleged Ozamiz rubout as among the incidents that need to be looked into “to avoid premature and prejudicial trial by publicity.” He said there is a need to review the rules of engagement and to upgrade the procedure that the police implement.

Poe expressed a different opinion on the Ozamiz rubout. “The DOJ is there. I have confidence in Secretary De Lima. She can do it. If they cannot do the investigation or we think there is something lacking, that’s when we will need to have our Senate inquiry.”

Poe admitted she is not an expert in public order and asked Honasan to be her vice chairman.

“But I have the discipline to study and make sure I’m doing the right thing for any particular assignment given and I’m a hard worker also.” – Rappler.com