Members of the Senate majority bloc are open to making their Statements of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth (SALNs) public following the issuance of a new memorandum by Ombudsman Jesus Crispin “Boying” Remulla, which lifts restrictions on public access to such documents.
Senator Erwin Tulfo confirmed this in a recent radio interview, saying that the majority of senators agree there is nothing to hide.
“Nakakita ko naman sa majority ay nagkakasundo naman kami lahat na wala namang itatago. So okay lang din sa amin sa majority na ilabas yung aming SALN,” Tulfo said.
However, he noted that the senators will first hold a caucus to discuss the process and determine if certain details should be redacted for security reasons.
“May mga mambabatas na sinasabi na may mga redactions sa kanilang SALN tulad ng mga address… Baka pwedeng alisin yun. Pero yung total na assets, liabilities mo at net worth, ilalabas pa rin,” he explained.
Tulfo also expressed surprise that the regular publication of government officials’ SALNs stopped in recent years, recalling that it used to be a common media practice to compare lawmakers’ assets annually.
“Dati nga, nilalabas yan… I believe every year pinapublish ng media kung sino ang congressman na may maraming asset, kung sino ang kokonti. Hindi ko nga malaman kung bakit natigil yan,” he said.
The senator emphasized that restoring public access to SALNs is vital to rebuilding public trust in government officials.
“Importante para makita ng mga kababayan natin na habang sa gobyerno ka, hindi ka yumayaman,” he added.
Under Remulla’s new memorandum, the 2020 circular issued by former Ombudsman Samuel Martires was revoked. The previous rule required a notarized written consent from the official before their SALN could be released to the public.