Palace launches freedom of info online

Starting today, people seeking information from agencies under the Office of the President may file their requests online.

Malacañang on Thursday announced it would begin implementing the Freedom of Information (FOI) in the executive department with the launch of the “electronic FOI” or e-FOI system of 15 pilot agencies.

Presidential Communications Assistant Secretary Kris Ablan said the project was intended to carry out President Duterte’s Executive Order No. 2, which mandated FOI in the executive branch.

He said the launching of the government website www.FOI.gov.ph would be held exactly 120 days after the President issued the order, allowing public access to documents, reports and projects of government offices.

“The e-FOI is an online facility wherein citizens are able to lodge their (FOI requests),” Ablan told a news briefing in Malacañang.

Due to technical limitations, he said only 15 agencies were currently ready to accept and process FOI requests sent through the Internet.

These are the Presidential Communications Operations Office, the Department of Information and Communications Technology, the Department of Budget and Management, the Department of Finance, the Department of Justice, the Department of Transportation and the Department of Health.

Also included in the list were the Philippine Statistics Authority, the National Archives of the Philippines, the Philippine National Police, the Philippine Health Insurance Corp., the Office of the Government Corporate Counsel, the Presidential Commission on Good Government, the Office of the Solicitor General and the Public Attorney’s Office.