Senate leader hopes for FOI bill passage before Congress adjourns
SunStar.com.ph
January 5, 2012

 MANILA—Senate Minority Leader Alan Peter Cayetano on Wednesday urged his colleagues to pass the Freedom of Information bill, which will make most government records and data available to citizens, before the 15th Congress adjourns.

Malacanang on Wednesday announced support for passage of the bill “to make the constitutional injunction making information a right of the public a living reality.”

Access to information that will affect national security, the country’s diplomatic relations, and police and military operations will remain restricted. The Palace version of the FOI bill will meanwhile make it mandatory for agencies to publish the Statements of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth of their officials online.

“This is a positive step for the Aquino government,” Cayetano, who challenged the President in 2010 to declare the FOI bill a priority measure, said.

Cayetano is one of the principal authors of the FOI bill at the Senate.

Read full article @ www.sunstar.com.ph