EXECUTIVE
ORDER NO. 317 PRESCRIBING
A CODE OF CONDUCT FOR RELATIVES AND CLOSE PERSONAL RELATIONS OF THE
PRESIDENT,
VICE PRESIDENT AND MEMBERS OF THE CABINET.
Whereas, the President, Vice President and Members of the Cabinet
are
duty bound to follow the highest standard of ethics in public service.chanrobles virtual law library
Whereas, the duty of the President, Vice President, and Members of
the Cabinet extends also to those related to them by consanguinity,
affinity,
intimacy or close personal relations, who must conduct themselves in a
manner which would not cast doubt on the integrity and impartiality of
the President, Vice President and Members of the Cabinet.chanrobles virtual law library
Whereas, there is a need to remove whatever public perception that
relatives and close personal relations of the President, Vice President
and Members of the Cabinet are or may be taking undue advantage of such
relationship to obtain unwarranted advantage and benefits from the
government.chanrobles virtual law library
Whereas, even without deliberately capitalizing, exploiting or
taking
advantage of their family or close personal relations with the
President,
Vice President and Members of the Cabinet in engaging in certain
transactions,
the proximity of relatives and close personal relations to the
President,
Vice President and Members of the Cabinet may create a wrong perception
that such relations are or have been abused by them.chanrobles virtual law library
Whereas, there is a need to lay down a Code of Conduct for
relatives
and close personal relations of the President, Vice President and
Members
of the Cabinet to ensure that existing laws in place cannot and will
not
be circumvented and that undue influence will not be exerted nor undue
advantage taken by these people as a result of their closeness with the
President, Vice President and Members of the Cabinet.chanrobles virtual law library
Now, Therefore, I, Joseph Ejercito Estrada, President of the
Republic
of the Philippines, by virtue of the powers vested in me by law, hereby
direct and order, as follows:
Section 1. Definition of Terms. - As used in this used in this
Executive
Order, the term:
a.
"Relative" refers to any and all persons related to the President,
Vice President and Members of the Cabinet within the fourth civil
degree
of consanguinity or affinity, and shall include any offspring of the
President,
Vice President and Members of the Cabinet and the parent of such
offspring,
as well as those related to the latter within the fourth civil degree
of
consanguinity or affinity.chanrobles virtual law library
b. "Close
Personal Relation" shall mean any person enjoying close
association
or intimacy with the President, Vice President and Members of the
Cabinet,
which issues easy access to his person such as political contributors,
personal friends of long standing, and former schoolmates of the
President,
Vice President and Members of the Cabinet.chanrobles virtual law library
c. "Gift"
refers to a thing or a right to dispose of gratuitously, or any
act
or liberality, in favor of another who accepts it, and shall include a
simulated sale or an ostensibly onerous disposition thereof. It shall
not
include an unsolicited gift of nominal or insignificant value not given
in anticipation of, or in exchange for, a favor from the President,
Vice
President and Members of the Cabinet or any other public official or
employee.chanrobles virtual law library
d. "Government"
includes the national government, the local governments, the
government-owned
and government-controlled corporations, and all other instrumentalities
or agencies of the Republic of the Philippines and their branches.chanrobles virtual law library
e. "Receiving
any gift" includes the act of accepting directly or indirectly, a
gift
from a person other than a member of his family or relative as defined
in this Act, even on the occasion of a family celebration or national
festivity
like Christmas, if the value of the gift is neither nominal nor
insignificant,
or the gift is given in anticipation of, or in exchange for, a favor.chanrobles virtual law library
f. "Loan"
covers both simple loan and commodatum as well as guarantees,
financing
arrangements or accommodations intended to ensure its approval.chanrobles virtual law library
g. "Person"
includes natural and juridical persons unless the context
indicates
otherwise.chanrobles virtual law library
h. "Public
Official" includes elective and appointive officials and employees,
permanent or temporary, whether in the career or non-career service,
including
military and police personnel, whether or not they receive
compensation,
regardless of amount.
Sec. 2. Prohibited Acts and Transactions. - In addition to
acts
and omissions of presidential Relatives provided in the Constitution
and
existing laws, the following shall constitute prohibited acts and
transactions
by a relative or a close personal relation:
a.
Solicitation
and acceptance, directly or indirectly, of any funds, gift, gratuity,
favor,
entertainment, loan or anything of monetary value for any purpose from
any person or corporation;
b.
Persuading,
inducing or influencing another public official to perform an act
constituting
a violation of rules and regulations duly promulgated by competent
authority
or an offense in connection with the official duties of the latter;
c.
Directly
or indirectly engaging in transactions with Government, particularly
government
financial institutions ("GFIs"), including securing any loan or
accommodation from such GFIs;
d.
Exerting
undue influence, directly or indirectly, on the outcome public biddings
for government contracts;
e.
Directly
or indirectly having financial or pecuniary interest in any business,
contract
or transaction with the Government.chanrobles virtual law library
f.
Using
the name of the President, Vice President or Members of the Cabinet,
directly
or through another person not related to the President, Vice President,
and Members of the Cabinet, in order to obtain any contract, favor or
other
benefit from the government.
Sec. 3. Simple Living. Relatives and Close Personal Relations shall
lead modest lives appropriate to their positions and income. - They
shall not indulge in extravagant and ostentatious display of wealth in
any form.chanrobles virtual law library
Sec. 4. Prohibition on government Financial Institutions. -
GFIs
are prohibited from increasing its equity or investing its funds for
purposes
of conferring a seat as director to a Relative or Close Personal
Relation
by means of increasing capital or equity or through any other means.chanrobles virtual law library
Sec. 5. Lawful Exercise of Profession. - Nothing in this
Executive
Order shall cover lawful acts of persons considered as a relative or
close
personal relation who have been engaged in the traditional,
established,
and lawful exercise of their profession, business or trade.chanrobles virtual law library
Sec. 6. Penalties for violations. - In addition to the criminal
liabilities provided for by existing laws should any act defined herein
fall within the definition of such laws, all agreements, contracts, and
any prohibition herein shall be deemed void and of no effect. Any
government
official or employee who shall tolerate or conspire with any relative
or
close personal relation in violation of this Executive Order shall be
subject
to suspension or removal from office as may be determined by the
President
and following an investigation of such violation.chanrobles virtual law library
Sec. 7. Effectivity, - This Order shall take effect
immediately.chanrobles virtual law library
Done in the City of Manila, this 9th day of November, 2000.chanrobles virtual law library
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