RECOMMENDED EXECUTIVE ORDER ON TRANSPARENCY IN GOVERNMENT

RECOMMENDED EXECUTIVE ORDER

ON TRANSPARENCY IN GOVERNMENT

For: President BENIGNO AQUINO III pnoy@noynoyaquino.ph

Sent: Monday, November 29, 2010 6:57:09 PM

Subject: Recommended Executive Order Mandating Anti-Corruption

Transparency in the Government’s Executive Branch

As reported by media, “President Benigno Aquino III wants a thorough review of the Freedom of Information bill (FOI) provisions before he certifies it as an urgent measure…. The FOI seeks to give public access to government documents such as contracts, upon formal request with the agency. There are at least 15 versions of the FOI bill pending before the committee on public information, including House Bill 53 authored by (Deputy Speaker and Quezon Representative Lorenzo) Tañada…. This 15th Congress, Tañada anticipates debates on a provision allowing for a retroactivity effect of the bill, which is being opposed by some lawmakers. Contrarily, Davao City Representative Karlo Nograles, son of former Speaker Prospero Nograles, who opposed the measure, had filed his own version stating that the FOI would only cover the incumbent administration.” (Lira Dalangin-Fernandez, INQUIRER.net, November 25, 2010).

The foregoing news item clearly suggests the PROBLEM of prolonged dilatory debates on the Freedom of Information bill that has been pending for years in Congress, with consequent perpetuation of non-transparent conditions in government that are favorable to corruption.

Fortunately, the President can outsmart the traditional politicians in Congress who apparently do not want to act expeditiously against corruption. There is a doable SOLUTION to the PROBLEM that can substantially address the anti-corruption objective of the bill, as expounded on in the herein POSITION PAPER (ANNEX A), from which I quote, as follows:

“Under Article VII, Section 17 of the Constitution, ‘the President shall have control of all the executive departments, bureaus, and offices.’ Thus, the President has the POWER to institute and make a reality the badly needed anti-corruption TRANSPARENCY or freedom of information in the government’s Executive Branch….

“The President can already issue an enabling interim Executive Order that will require anti-corruption transparency solely in his jurisdiction, the Executive Branch, which includes anyway the government's biggest spenders like DPWH, DND, DOTC, DENR, DA, DAR, local government units, etc., therefore the envisioned Presidential order on transparency can already provide a tool for capturing corruption in some of its most fertile grounds, such as the 1.6 TRILLION-PESO budgeted annual expenditures of the national government alone….

“If the President has the POWER to curb corruption in his jurisdiction through issuing an Executive Order that can promote anti-corruption transparency in the Executive Branch, why wait forever for traditional politicians in the Legislative Branch to do it for him through unnecessary self-imposed prerequisite passage of the Freedom of Information bill—as was done by the past President? Why wait for legislators to do it at their own sweet time--which nobody can tell exactly when? …To begin with, after years of waiting, a highly emasculated, weak, and unsatisfactory anti-corruption Freedom of Information Act may come out from Congress….

“Issuance of the subject Executive Order is in accordance with President Aquino’s latest pronouncement: ‘Our country will move forward in the broad light of day, where everything we do and how we do it is clear, honest and transparent. It is our strategy for rectifying errors in the past; it is the standard of performance you can expect from this government.’ (Chino S. Leyco, “Purisima calls for transparency across all government institutions,” Manila Bulletin, November 28, 2010, pages B-1 and B-4).”

* * *

Accordingly, I hereby respectfully recommend the issuance by the President of an interim EXECUTIVE ORDER mandating anti-corruption TRANSPARENCY in government operations in the Executive Branch, in the meantime that our legislature has not yet passed the crucial Freedom of Information Act for the entire government bureaucracy. If this Presidential order is issued, we may yet achieve a significant breakthrough against corruption, because it will facilitate detection and prevention of rampant corruption in government.

For your reference, enclosed is the POSITION PAPER expounding on the need for the subject Executive Order, including the recommended expansion of the area of anti-corruption role of private-sector PUBLIC OBSERVERS--from PUBLIC BIDDING in government purchases and infrastructure contracts under the existing Procurement Law, up to actual CONSTRUCTION of infrastructure projects as herein proposed.

May I have your feedback through email on my recommendation.

Thank you.

MARCELO L. TECSON

A Concerned Citizen

martecson@gmail.com

San Miguel, Bulacan

11-28-10, 11-29-10, 12-27-10

Copy distribution through separate emails:

Select executive and legislative government officials;

Commission on Audit officials;

Coalition Against Corruption;

Select other Civil Society Organizations;

Select lawyers, members of media and academe,

professional & think-tank organizations,

CBCP, concerned citizens, etc.

-------------------------------------------------------

ANNEX A

POSITION PAPER ON

EXECUTIVE ORDER MANDATING

ANTI-CORRUPTION TRANSPARENCY

IN THE GOVERNMENT’S EXECUTIVE BRANCH

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY CAN HELP

USHER IN A DISCONTINUITY OF BIG-TIME

CORRUPTION HERETOFORE COMMITTED

WITH IMPUNITY IN GOVERNMENT

The information technology explosion already upon us for quite sometime may yet usher in a discontinuity in event in corruption and "dagdag-bawas" cheating in elections, both of which have victimized the entire nation for so long.

Discontinuity in event signals the obsolescence/demise/end of an era, industry, technology, practice, or activity as a result of new development that introduces major innovations or change in conditions, such as the death of the private telegraph industry (exemplified by RCPI and PT&T) upon the advent and proliferation of affordable cell phones. Captains of industries have to guard against such discontinuity in event, otherwise they may be caught napping. At the same time, they should be alert to the opportunities offered by the ensuing change, such as what Mr. Manuel V. Pangilinan did when he took charge of PLDT, which now relies more on other sources of revenue—brought about by fantastic advancement in technology—which were not available years ago.

Early this month, while on holiday and visit to relatives abroad, I had a lengthy talk with a technical expert working right in Microsoft headquarters in Washington State in the US . The talk reinforced my idea that, as documents become available in the course of public bidding for government purchases and infrastructure contracts, if these documents can be posted to the Internet and reviewed online not only by designated PUBLIC OBSERVERS but also by the general public--especially the technical experts among them--then rigging or manipulation of public biddings will be extremely difficult to hide and can be readily exposed before all appropriate public and private fora, including the influential international community if major part of project funding comes as loan or grant from foreign governments and institutions. If foreign contractors are involved in corruption in public bidding and awarding of government contracts, if the corruption can be determined and proven online, even their own governments may run after them for their wrongdoing.

Thus, in the case of corruption, hopefully, this time around, advancement in information technology may help rein in corruption in government.

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY CAN SERVE AS TOOL

FOR TRANSPARENCY IN GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS

We Filipinos will be a hopeless case as a people if we cannot properly act on fully documented and conclusive cases of corruption exposed online before the whole world.

Please note that documentary evidences of all exposed past big-ticket corruption have not been seen by the public, so there were no concerted outcries against them. In the $329-million ZTE-NBN deal where alleged huge contract overpricing was exposed first by Philippine Star columnist Jarius Bondoc, then subsequently affirmed by other whistle blowers in Senate Blue Ribbon Committee hearings, even the perceived corrupt past Administration backed out and aborted the already signed contract with ZTE Corporation, to avoid destabilizing public backlash from the potential full exposure of the alleged blatant $130-million overpricing.

(The apparently intentional failure to pin down seeming corruption in the highest places was treated in my email to the then investigating Senate Blue Ribbon Committee, Office of the Ombudsman, and the Commission on Audit, on the subject: 7th Joint Follow Up: THE LITMUS TEST OF SINCERITY AGAINST CORRUPTION... REQUESTED COMPARISON of CONTRACT PRICES vs. MARKET PRICES in the ZTE-NBN DEAL.... The requested price comparison--a standard audit and investigation procedure--could have readily proven, if true, the staggering overpricing, but it was never done to this day, so there is no proper closure yet on the ZTE-NBN controversy.)

If the bases for decisions on increases in oil prices and tollway rates (calculations, basic assumptions, and major supporting documents) are posted to the Internet and can be reviewed online, technical experts from the public can determine if the price/rate increases are valid and correct.

If relevant documents covering other important government transactions most susceptible to corruption can be reviewed online, then other cases of corruption can be detected and prevented and thereby minimized.

With the advent of election computerization or automation, if images of—or equivalent data on--all election ballots can be reproduced and reviewed online, then this very crucial development can usher in the neutralization of "dagdag-bawas" and other forms of election fraud and cheating that, heretofore, were seemingly condoned in COMELEC and presidential and senatorial electoral tribunals.

THE PRESIDENT IS EMPOWERED TO ISSUE

AN EXECUTIVE ORDER MANDATING TRANSPARENCY

IN HIS JURISDICTION—THE EXECUTIVE BRANCH

Under Article VII, Section 17 of the Constitution, "the President shall have control of all the executive departments, bureaus, and offices." Thus, the President has the POWER to institute and make a reality the badly needed anti-corruption TRANSPARENCY or freedom of information in the government’s Executive Branch. He need not wait for the enactment of a Freedom of Information Act as far as promoting transparency in the Executive Branch is concerned.

The President can already issue an enabling interim Executive Order that will require anti-corruption transparency solely in his jurisdiction, the Executive Branch, which includes anyway the government's biggest spenders like DPWH, DND, DOTC, DENR, DA, DAR, local government units, etc., therefore the envisioned Presidential order on transparency can already provide a tool for capturing corruption in some of its most fertile grounds, such as the 1.6 TRILLION-PESO budgeted annual expenditures of the national government alone. In effect, the Executive Order can provide the means of attaining within the Executive Branch the main objective of the long pending Freedom of Information bill.

If the President has the POWER to curb corruption in his jurisdiction through issuing an Executive Order that can promote anti-corruption transparency in the Executive Branch, why wait forever for traditional politicians in the Legislative Branch to do it for him through unnecessary self-imposed prerequisite passage of the Freedom of Information bill—as was done by the past President? Why wait for legislators to do it at their own sweet time--which nobody can tell exactly when? Why be at the mercy of Congress, which last time intentionally failed to pass the Freedom of Information bill in the first place? It will be unwise for the President to rely on a dilly-dallying Congress in doing what he himself can expeditiously and properly do. To begin with, after years of waiting, a highly emasculated, weak, and unsatisfactory anti-corruption Freedom of Information Act may come out from Congress.

The President can steal the thunder from traditional politicians in Congress if he will promptly issue the subject Executive Order. It is one bold and concrete move that will dramatize his strong resolve against corruption.

PROPOSED EXPANSION OF THE ROLE OF PRIVATE-SECTOR

PUBLIC OBSERVERS FROM PUBLIC BIDDING TO ACTUAL

CONSTRUCTION OF GOVERNMENT INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS

To strengthen anti-corruption internal control in government through promoting a more effective system of checks and balances in it, the role of private-sector PUBLIC OBSERVERS should not be limited to all stages of the PROCUREMENT process as currently provided under the Procurement Law, which deals essentially with public bidding and awarding of contracts for government purchases and infrastructure projects. The herein proposed Executive Order should extend the role of PUBLIC OBSERVERS to ACTUAL CONSTRUCTION of INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS--to ensure contractors' compliance to contracted quantity and quality specifications, such as thickness and strength (in terms of pounds per square inch or psi) of concrete mix poured on roads, bridges, and buildings; quantity and size of steel materials used, etc. Pictures and videos before, during, and after construction of the project should be taken and posted online, so that ghost projects and other forms of cheating can be detected and prevented, especially by stakeholders--the concerned local-community organizations and citizens--who stand to benefit permanently from proper construction of the particular infrastructure projects in their community.

RECOMMENDATION ON THE COMPELLING NEED OF THE HOUR

Issuance of the subject Executive Order is in accordance with President Aquino’s latest pronouncement: “Our country will move forward in the broad light of day, where everything we do and how we do it is clear, honest and transparent. It is our strategy for rectifying errors in the past; it is the standard of performance you can expect from this government.” (Chino S. Leyco, “Purisima calls for transparency across all government institutions,” Manila Bulletin, November 28, 2010, pages B-1 and B-4).

The need of the hour then is for the President to be faithful to his anti-corruption vow, to “walk the talk” through giving substance to his election anti-corruption promises to the people—by issuing an interim EXECUTIVE ORDER mandating anti-corruption TRANSPARENCY in government operations in the Executive Branch, in the meantime that our legislature has not yet passed the crucial Freedom of Information Act for the entire government bureaucracy. If this Presidential order is issued, we may yet achieve a significant breakthrough against corruption, because it will facilitate detection and prevention of rampant corruption in government.

Therefore, the issuance by the President of the urgently needed Executive Order on anti-corruption transparency or freedom of information in the Executive Branch is strongly recommended.

MARCELO L. TECSON

A Concerned Citizen

11-28-10, 11-29-10, 12-27-10

NOTE: The foregoing Position Paper is a consolidation and wrap-up of my anti-corruption emails issued to select government officials and concerned Filipinos from October 29 to November 27, 2010. --MLT