De Lima files resolution to investigate 8888 Complaint Hotline

Senator Leila de Lima has filed Senate Resolution No. 550 urging her colleagues to investigate the efficacy and accessibility in the implementation of the 8888 Complaint Hotline.

“Congress has the responsibility to conduct a probe and study the implementation of 8888 Complaint Hotline as to its effectivity and equal accessibility to all citizens,” De Lima said in a statement issued on Monday.

Inaugurated in 2016 via Executive Order No. 6, the 24-hour hotline was instituted to provide a complaints hotline for the public to report corrupt or underperforming government officials and projects.

De Lima claimed the hotline served 54,743 calls but failed to accommodate 1.4 million calls in the first five months of operation from August to December 2016 due to the service being “undermanned.”

She added that some Filipinos complained with being charged P5 per minute via mobile despite prior vows by the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) to have the hotlines free of charge.

“While there is no charge if they call via landline, this program is still not accessible to all, especially because not everyone has an access to landlines and prepaid mobile phone users would not be able to access the hotline either by call or SMS if they have no remaining credits,” De Lima said.

Data from the Civil Service Commission revealed that only 44,096 out of 54,743 calls were processed in 2016 and 71,646 out of 94,551 calls in the first half of 2017.

The SSS and Quezon City local government unit topped the list of government agencies and LGUs with the most complaints, followed by the Land Transportation Office and Manila.

“Slow process” and “unclear procedures” topped the list of common Anti-Red Tape Act-related complaints, though only 31 percent of all calls were about government inefficiency and graft and corruption.

Office of the Cabinet Secretary spokesperson Jonas George Soriano said in a text message to GMA News Online in July that the government plans to re-launch 8888.

“Trainings have already been conducted after the necessary hardware and software were sourced, final protocols are still being ironed out and we hope to do the launching after the series of pre-operating tests have been done,” Soriano said. — RSJ, GMA News