Pass FOI bill!
Cayetano to House: Restore Filipino people's faith in government

Let us pass the FOI bill now! Para matakot ang mga kurakot!"

Senate Majority Leader Alan Peter "Companero" S. Cayetano strongly and respectfully urged his colleagues in the House of Representatives to follow the lead of the Senate and respond to the Filipino public's clamor for the immediate enactment into law of the Freedom of Information (FOI) bill.

"The House, the Senate, and Malacanang should be partners in promoting transparency in the country. Enacting the FOI measure into law is a good first step in regaining the people's trust in the three branches of the government," Cayetano noted.

Cayetano said now that the Senate has passed FOI measure for the third time, the last two instances in less than a year, it is now up to the lower house to do its part and pass the landmark bill that will empower the Filipino people in being active participants in the fight against graft and corruption.

"Aminin na natin na mahalaga na maibalik ang pagtitiwala ng mga tao sa gobyerno. Magagawa natin ito kung maipapasa natin ang mahahalagang batas katulad ng FOI bill. Sana naman, maisabatas na ito para medaling makita kahit na ng ordinaryong mamamayan kung may anomalya sa gobyerno," the senator said.

The FOI bill was approved by the Senate in the 15th and 14th Congress, but it failed to hurdle deliberations in the House.

Cayetano said that at the time, he was optimistic that the Aquino administration has regained the trust of the people in government through its advocacy of a "tuwid na daan"

"But now reality has changed this optimism into exigency as numerous scandals already threaten to destroy the people's trust in government that the administration has been trying to rebuild," he said.

"In a time when our citizenry is already so sick of corruption, abuse of power, and deception, we need to pass a measure that would ensure our people of a government that is truly for the people," Cayetano stressed.

With an FOI law in place, Cayetano assured that every Filipino would have the capacity to be "a graft-buster, a reformist, and a crucial building block of an empowered citizenry united in aiming for national development."