SALNs of Bongbong, Sara, Martires, sought

Akbayan party-list and several civil society groups yesterday formally filed a request before the Office of the Ombudsman for copies of the Statements of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth (SALNs) of President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos, Vice President Sara Duterte, former Ombudsman Samuel Martires and heads of Constitutional commissions.

- 

“Our request is a test of this government’s seriousness to address the massive corruption scandal. We will not accept half-measures. The Ombudsman must heed the public’s demand for transparency and immediately release the SALN of the country’s top officials,” Akbayan president Rafaela David said.

Akbayan, together with groups Tindig Pilipinas, Buhay ang People Power Network and Clergy for Good Governance, filed the request ahead of the effectivity of Memorandum Circular (MC) No. 3 series of 2025 on November 15.

MC No. 3 allows public access to the SALNs which are under the custody of the Ombusman.

The new memorandum, issued by Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla last October 14, effectively repeals MC. No. 1 series of 2020 issued by Martires, which restricted the release of SALNs under the custody of the ombudsman unless there was a notarized authorization from the SALN owners or there was an order from the court in connection with pending cases.

Section 3 (c) of MC No.3 also states that SALNs filed at the ombudsman shall not be destroyed but instead shall be “digitally stored” while physical copies shall be kept for 20 years from the date of receipt.