ADMINISTRATIVE
CIRCULAR NO. 02-2002CONSTITUTING
A TASK FORCE TO FORMULATE A DISCLOSURE POLICY FOR THE SUPREME COURT
WHEREAS,
the Philippine
Constitution provides in Section 7 of Article III: “The right of
the
people to information on matters of public concern shall be
recognized. Access
to official records, and to documents, and papers pertaining to
official
acts, transactions, or decisions, as well as to government research
data
used as basis for policy development , shall be afforded the citizen,
subject
to such limitations as may be provided by law;”
WHEREAS,
Republic
Act
No. 6713 (Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials
and
Employees), among other directives, requires a standard of conduct
for handling and disseminating government information by public
officials
and employees, and provides penalties for violation thereof;
WHEREAS,
pursuant to Section 12 of Republic
Act No. 6713, the Civil Service Commission adopted the “Rules
Implementing
the Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and
Employees;”
Rule IV of which enumerates guidelines on Transparency on Transparency
of Transactions and Access to Information, which require “full public
disclosure”
of “official information, records and documents” subject to exceptions
specified therein;
WHEREAS,
the Davide Watch, the vision-mission statement for the Judiciary,
envisions
a “Judiciary that is independent, effective and efficient, and worthy
of
public trust and confidence,” and declares: “ As the Judiciary is meant
to serve the people through the dispensation of justice, the Bench must
be fully accountable to the public by remaining transparent, yet not
betray
those aspects of the judiciary process which require utmost
confidentiality;”
WHEREAS,
there is a demand and a need to provide the general public, including
the
personnel of the Supreme Court, access to information relevant to their
activities and, more importantly, their participation in democratic
processes;
WHEREAS,
it is equally imperative to ensure the security of information which
must
remain confidential to preserve the integrity and objectivity of the
processes
and policies of the Supreme Court which require deliberation by its
Members
and officers;
WHEREAS,
there is an equal demand and need to instill discipline among the
custodians
of judicial information to facilitate public access to information
where
such access is guaranteed, and to ensure the integrity and security of
information where confidentiality is essential;
WHEREAS,
there have been instances of serious breaches of the confidentiality of
sensitive information consisting of, among other infractions, the
premature
disclosure of Supreme Court decisions and resolutions, the leakage of
deliberations
or voting of its Members, and the revelation of names of ponentes of
cases
despite prohibition against the same;
WHEREAS,
the breaches described above have diminished public trust and
confidence
in the impartiality of the Members of the Supreme Court and the
confidentiality
of their deliberations, confused the public as to the official of
accurate
Court-related information, and otherwise hampered the deliberative
processes
of the Supreme Court; and
WHEREAS,
there has been an increasing public interest in information generated
by,
and related to, the Judiciary;
WHEREAS,
it is hereby ordered that a set of rules be formulated to guide the
various
offices and personnel of the Supreme Court in the dissemination and
safekeeping
of information generated or held by the Supreme Court, and to prescribe
the necessary sanctions to guarantee appropriate conduct with regard to
the handling of such information. This
body of rules shall be known as the Disclosure Policy of the Supreme
Court.
A
Task Force on the Disclosure Policy is hereby created to formulate and
recommend for adoption by the Supreme Court a Disclosure policy to
ensure
that the Supreme Court provides the fullest possible access to, or
disclosure
of, official information to the public in accordance with the
Constitution,
applicable laws, and implementing rules and regulations.
I. DECLARATION
OF POLICIES
1. The
Supreme Court shall provide maximum responsible disclosure of timely,
accurate
and relevant information to the public without betraying those aspects
of the decision-making process which require utmost confidentiality.
2. There
shall be a presumption in favor of public disclosure of information
generated
or held by the Supreme Court.The
presumption shall be subject to exceptions to be determined by the Task
Force.
3. The
Supreme Court prohibits and shall sanction abuse of workplace access to
information for unauthorized or illegal use.
4. The
Supreme Court shall encourage the use and development of information
communication
technology that will assure responsible disclosure of information at
affordable
cost to the public through all efficient channels.
5. “Information”
shall be understood to mean any knowledge that can be communicated
regardless
of its physical form or the format in which it is contained, whether in
tape, photographic, or electronic format, that is owned by, produced by
or for, or is under the control of, the Supreme Court. The
form in which information is maintained shall not affect its
availability.
6. The
Supreme Court shall not, however, be obliged to generate specific
reports
out of information in its custody. An
exception is when the information is maintained in a computer database,
in which case, the process or retrieving information may result in the
creation of a report which is not regularly produced by the Court.
II. COMPOSITION
The
Task Force shall be headed by Assistant Court Administrator Antonio H.
Dujua, and shall be composed of the following members:chanroblesvirtuallawlibrary
Atty.
Ma. Luisa D. Villarama
Office
of the Clerk of Court
Atty.
Teresita G. Dimaisip
Judicial
Records Office
Atty.
Romeo M. Salazar
Office
of the Administrative Services
Atty.
Thelma C. Bahia
Office
of the Court Administrator -
Court
Management Office
Atty.
Conrad S. Tolentino
Office
of the Chief Justice
Rhoda
S. Santos
Sheila
C. Critica
Public
Information Office
The
Chairman may designate a Secretary-Recorder for the Task
Force. The
Task Force may call on resource persons and consult with the Justices
and
other key officials of the Court in furtherance of the performance of
its
responsibilities as defined herein.
The
Chairman shall be entitled to an expense allowance of P500 per meeting
but not to exceed P3,000 per month. The
members shall be entitled to an expense allowance of P350 per meeting
but
not to exceed P2,100 per month. The
Secretary-Recorder shall be entitled to an expense allowance of P650
per
month.
III. RESPONSIBILITIES
1. The
Task Force shall formulate the Disclosure Policy for the Supreme Court,
which shall
a. Determine
which information and documents generated or held by the Supreme Court
must be disclosed and which must be withheld, either temporarily or
permanently;
b. Identity
or catalogue the said information and documents, including personnel
records,
and identity the offices or sources responsible for these information
and
documents;
c. Prescribe
an access classification system defining levels of access, which system
shall guide custodians and users of information as to what types of
information
and documents may be accessed by whom, from which offices or sources,
and
which must remain confidential. Only
the Members of the Court shall be allowed absolute access to all
information
generated and held by the Supreme Court, but the restrictions on
disclosure
as specified in the Disclosure Policy shall apply to the Members with
equal
force as to all officers and personnel of the Court;
d. Define
the responsibilities of the custodians of information and documents, as
well as those who handle such information and documents as part of
their
responsibilities;
e. Prescribe
guidelines to be observed by a requesting party to facilitate a request
for information or documents;
f. Prescribe
a system of fees for the provision of access to Court information and
reproduction
of documents. The system
shall recognize the financial capabilities of the requesters of
information,
the purpose for which the information, the format in which the
information
is stored or sought, and other relevant considerations;
g. Prescribe
reasonable time limits within which requested information or documents
should be provided the requester;
h. Prescribe
sanctions for violations of the Disclosure Policy. Sanctions
may include reprimand, suspension, loss or denial of access to
information,
dismissal from the service, or other sanctions in accordance with
prevailing
regulations of the Supreme Court and applicable laws. The
Disclosure Policy shall prescribe procedures by which complaints
involving
disclosure may be decided, and shall determine the appropriate body or
office which shall oversee the implementation of sanctions; and
i. Identify
the person/s who or office/s which shall conduct a regular review of
the
contents of the Disclosure Policy.The
Disclosure Policy shall likewise prescribe the period during which such
review shall take place.
The
Disclosure Policy for the Supreme Court must take into account all
existing
information-related policies of the Court as well as applicable laws,
rules
and regulations. Upon
completion of the Disclosure Policy, the same shall be submitted by the
Task Force to the Supreme Court En Banc for its approval.
2. In
addition to the above responsibilities, the Task Force shall
a. Publish
an agency which shall contain and index and description of the major
information
systems of the Supreme Court, and provide simple and useful guide to
the
intended audience for obtaining various types and categories of public
information from the Court. Where
the Task Force has deemed it necessary to prescribe forms to facilitate
access to information, such forms will also be included in the agency
guide. The
agency guide shall be available in electronic format and be accessible
through the Supreme Court’s website.
b. Determine
the capability of the personnel necessary for the effective and
efficient
implementation of the disclosure policy and, if necessary, outline a
program
for the development or improvement of such capability.
IV. COMPLETION
OF WORK
The
Task Force shall complete its work under this Administrative Circular
within
eight months from its constitution.
This
Administrative Circular shall take effect on 25 January 2002.
Issued
this 14th day of January 2002.
(Sgd.)
HILARIO G. DAVIDE
Chief
Justice
(Sgd.)
JOSUE N. BELLOSILLO
Chairman,
Second Division
(Sgd.)
JOSE A.R. MELO
Chairman,
Third Division
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