Government officials who have made their SALN publicly available

Who among elected and appointed officials will heed the call for transparency? Follow Rappler’s SALN demand trackers.

MANILA, Philippines – The Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALN) is an important document. Its purpose is to promote transparency in line with good governance.

Under at least three documents: the Philippine Constitution of 1987, Republic Act 6713, and Republic Act 3019, government officials and employees, with few exceptions, are required to submit their SALNs.

Section 8 of RA 6713 – Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees – states that “the public has the right to know their assets, liabilities, net worth, and financial and business interests.”

Despite these clear provisions for public access, obtaining a government official’s SALN is no walk in the park. Asking for a copy, which should ideally be easy, is often a tedious process that leads nowhere.

Government employees were required to submit their 2023 SALNs by April 30, 2024. The Rappler research team has since sent out official letters requesting copies of these SALNs, and we want to walk readers through each step.

Rappler publishes story pages that will provide tools to track SALN requests to various officials:

These trackers will include the name and title of the government official and the status of the SALN application – whether it was submitted, confirmed, approved or rejected. These history pages will be updated every time Rappler receives a response to each of its applications.

The Supreme Court in a 2019 ruling said the purpose of submitting a SALN is to “promote transparency in the civil service and create a deterrent against public officials bent on enriching themselves through unlawful means.”

Who among elected and appointed officials will take this call for transparency to heart? – Rappler.com