Ta帽ada: Passage of FOI bill can eliminate corruption in PH gov鈥檛
CALL FOR ACTION Activists have been demanding government transparency and full public disclosure through the passage of the Freedom of Information Bill in 2017. — INQUIRER PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines — The passage of the Freedom of Information (FOI) bill can eliminate corruption in the government, Mamamayang Liberal party-list 2nd nominee and former lawmaker Erin Tañada said on Wednesday.
This was his answer when asked about urgent reforms needed to eradicate corruption during a forum by Multiply-Ed Philippines. T
The FOI bill seeks to give the public full access to official government records. However, the bill remains stagnant in Congress, according to Tañada, who co-authored the FOI bill at the House of Representatives.
READ: Tañada says FOI ‘back in ICU’
“We all know that if the FOI bill had been passed, it would have allowed people to look into the graft and corrupt practices of the GMA (Gloria Macapagal Arroyo) administration at that time — that’s why it didn’t get passed,” Tañada said in Filipino.
“Since then, the FOI [bill] has not moved forward, even though some lawmakers mention it from time to time — but there has been no real champion actively pushing for it,” he added.
Former President Rodrigo Duterte signed Executive Order No. 2 in July 2016, implementing FOI in the executive branch of the government.
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Tañada was also asked how the government’s procurement processes could be streamlined. He said amending the procurement law is necessary to address delays.
On the matter of ensuring that educational resources are delivered on time, he said that transparency in allocating budgets and discussions at a local level are important for the education sector.
