Marcos to observe rules in releasing his SALN —Palace

President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. is ready to release his statement of assets, liabilities, and net worth (SALN) to the “proper authorities,” provided that the procedures are followed, Malacañang said Sunday.

According to Presidential Communications Office Undersecretary and Palace Press Officer Claire Castro, Marcos has already indicated that he would comply with the established guidelines regarding the release of SALNs of public officials.

“Unang-una, nagsalita na ang Pangulo at siya ay handa naman pong ibigay at ipakita ang kaniyang SALN sa proper authority,” she was quoted as saying in a press briefing in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia as released in a Malacañang statement.

“At mayroon naman po na tayong rules or procedure na inilahad ang Ombudsman at sinabi din naman dito na lahat ng request for SALN ay pagbibigyan pero may mga certain guidelines na ibinigay and Ombudsman. So ang ehekutibo ay tutugon dito,” she added.

(First of all, the President has already spoken, and he is ready to submit and show his SALN to the proper authority.

And we have rules or procedures set by the Office of the Ombudsman, which also state that all requests for SALNs will be granted but under certain guidelines. So the Executive branch will comply with this.)

Castro noted, however, that SALNs should not be used “indiscriminately” as weapons for political attacks or to discredit government officials, as earlier remarked by Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin.

Cabinet officials of the Marcos administration held an informal meeting to discuss the issue on Saturday, October 25, where they agreed to comply with the Ombudsman’s procedures.

“Kahapon nagkaroon lamang sila ng informal meeting at napag-usapan nga ito… But still nandiyan naman ang procedure na inilahad ng Ombudsman at ang bawat isa naman ay tutugon dito,” Castro said.

(They only had an informal meeting yesterday where this matter was discussed… But still, the procedure laid out by the Ombudsman remains in place, and everyone will comply.)

In a report on "24 Oras," Bersamin clarified the SAN of Cabinet officials will be available "upon request" and requesting party will be granted access if the reason is legitimate.

Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla earlier this month issued a memorandum scrapping the restriction on access to SALNs of public officials, as he cited transparency in removing the need for consent on the part of the public officer whose SALN is being requested.

The memorandum covers the President, Vice President, the heads of Constitutional Offices, and local government officials, as the Ombudsman is the official repository of the SALNs of such officials.

Under the memo, a request for a copy of a public official’s SALN may be filed before the Ombudsman’s Public Assistance and Corruption Prevention Office at the Central Office, or any Public Assistance and Corruption Prevention Bureau of the Ombudsman’s regional or sectoral offices.—LDF, GMA Integrated News