Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales reminds all government officials and employees to file their respective Statements of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALNs) on or before 30 April 2018.
Ombudsman Morales underscored that “this act is both a constitutional and statutory obligation of every public servant such that failure to do so warrants the imposition of a concomitant administrative penalty.”
Failure to file the SALN or dishonesty in doing so, warrants the suspension of one to six months for the first offense, and dismissal from service for the second offense which, when warranted, may also lead to forfeiture of ill-gotten or unexplained wealth.
The SALN is a declaration under oath of assets (i.e., lands, houses, cash, etc), liabilities (i.e., personal or institutional loans), and business and financial interests, of a government official or employee, of the spouse, and of unmarried children under 18 years old still living in their parents’ household. It includes a waiver authorizing the Ombudsman or her authorized representative to obtain and secure documents that may show assets, liabilities, net worth, business interests, and financial connections from all appropriate government agencies for investigatory purposes.
Under Republic Act No. 6713 (Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards of Public Officials and Employees), the submission of SALNs must be made (1) within 30 days after assumption of office; (2) on or before April 30 of every year thereafter; and (3) within 30 days after separation from the service.
The SALNs of the President, the Vice-President, Chairmen and Commissioners of constitutional commissions and offices, the Ombudsman and the Deputies, officials and employees of departments, bureaus, agencies, including government-owned and-controlled corporations (GOCCs) with and without charter and their subsidiaries, state universities and colleges, and local government units, the offices of which are located in the National Capital Region, are submitted to the Office of the Ombudsman (Central Office).
The SALNs of regional officials and employees of the department, bureaus and agencies of the national government, judiciary, constitutional commissions and offices, GOCCs and their subsidiaries, and state colleges and universities; provincial elective officials and employees including governors, vice-governors, and members of Sangguniang Panlalawigan, city and municipal elective officials and employees including mayors, vice-mayors, members of the Sangguniang Panglungsod/Bayan and barangay officials; officers of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) below the rank of colonel or captain and other enlisted officers; officers of the Philippine National Police (PNP) below the rank of senior superintendent and other police officers; officers of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) below the rank of Commodore are submitted to the Office of the Deputy Ombudsman in their respective area offices.
Moreover, Ombudsman Circular No. 2 (series of 2017) now requires the Human Resource Management Office of each covered agency and instrumentality of the government, pending the full implementation of the electronic SALN (e-SALN) program, to submit to the concerned Ombudsman office the electronic copies along with the hard copies of the SALNs on or before June 30 of every year.
It may be recalled that in May 2013, the Office of the Ombudsman and the World Bank signed a Memorandum of Agreement for the project entitled “Enhancing the Income and Asset Declaration System.” The project is designed to develop a digital-based online system for the bureaucracy-wide filing of SALNs. In May 2016, the eSALN system was launched with the Office of the Ombudsman and the Civil Service Commission as pilot agencies under phase I, to be followed by the Anti-Money Laundering Council, Office of the Deputy Executive Secretary for Internal Audit, and Office of the Deputy Executive Secretary for Legal Affairs under phase 2.
Under the proposed e-SALN project, covered government officials and employees may access, accomplish and file the SALN over the internet using a web browser.
As to the other official repositories, the SALNs of senators and congressmen are submitted to the respective Secretaries of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Office of the Clerk of Court is the repository of the SALNs of justices of the Supreme Court, Court of Appeals, Sandiganbayan and Court of Tax Appeals, while the Office of the Court Administrator is the custodian of the SALNs of judges of different trial and special courts. To the Office of the President go the SALNs of department secretaries, including undersecretaries and foreign service officers, heads of GOCCs, its subsidiaries, state universities and colleges, officers of the AFP from the rank of colonel or naval captain, officers of the PNP from the rank of senior superintendent, and officers of the PCG from the rank of commodore.[1]
The Civil Service Commission is the repository of the SALNs of all other officials and employees in the central/main/national offices of the departments. bureaus, and agencies of the National Government, the Judiciary, Constitutional Commissions and offices, GOCCs with and without original charters, including their subsidiaries in the region.
Government officials and employees who serve in an honorary capacity, laborers and casual or temporary workers are exempt from filing the SALN. ###
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[1] Civil Service Commission Resolution No. 1500088 S. 2015 likewise provides the venue for the submission of the SALNs of the officials and employees of the other branches of the government.