Rowegie Abanto

Members of the progressive group Bunyog gather outside the Office of the Ombudsman in Quezon City on Tuesday to demand the release and publication of the Statements of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth (SALN) of government officials allegedly involved in large-scale corruption. The group calls for transparency and accountability, urging the Ombudsman to take decisive action and uphold the public’s right to information.  Maria Tan, ABS-CBN News

Article (news)

GHOST FLOOD CONTROL PROJECTS

ABS-CBN News

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/176127593950920251021-anti-corruption-ombudsman-bunyog-MT.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" alt="Members of the progressive group Bunyog gather outside the Office of the Ombudsman in Quezon City to demand the release and publication of the Statements of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth of government officials allegedly involved in large-scale corruption. Maria Tan, ABS-CBN News/File"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Members of the progressive group Bunyog gather outside the Office of the Ombudsman in Quezon City to demand the release and publication of the Statements of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth of government officials allegedly involved in large-scale corruption. <em>Maria Tan, ABS-CBN News/File</em></span></span></span></div><p>MANILA (UPDATED) —  On October 14, Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla announced the easing of access to public officials&#x27; Statements of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth, or SALNs, to help boost transparency in government.</p><p>The restoration of public access to SALNs came against the backdrop of investigations into the <a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2025/10/23/amlc-p5-2-b-in-assets-frozen-in-flood-control-probe-2251">multibillion-peso</a> flood control scandal and following President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.&#x27;s order to <a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2025/8/27/marcos-orders-lifestyle-check-on-all-gov-t-officials-amid-flood-project-probe-1141">conduct lifestyle checks on all government officials</a>.</p><p>SALNs have been used as a tool to detect potential ill-gotten wealth, but obtaining copies was made difficult during the Duterte administration when former Ombudsman Samuel Martires laid out <a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2025/9/2/if-chosen-as-ombudsman-remulla-vows-to-overturn-martires-circular-on-saln-1440">prohibitive rules</a>, including requiring approval from the SALN filer.</p><p>As the new graft buster <a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2025/10/14/ombudsman-restores-public-access-to-salns-of-government-officials-1739">reopens public access to SALNs</a>, what should we know about them, and how can they be used to help fight corruption?</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>WHAT ARE LISTED IN THE SALN?</strong></div><p>All public officials and employees are required by law to declare their assets, liabilities, and net worth, as well as their financial and business interests, including those of their spouses and unmarried children under age 18.</p><p><strong>Assets </strong>to be listed include real property like houses and lots — including their exact locations, mode of acquisition and their value on the table declaration — cash, stocks, investments, down to &quot;minimal valued properties&quot; like books and gadgets, according to a 2019 guide by the Civil Service Commission.</p><p><strong>Liabilities</strong> refer to outstanding debts like loans, credit card balances and are based on the money owed as of December 31 of the preceding year.</p><p>The declarant&#x27;s <strong>Net Worth </strong>would be the total of real and personal assets less the total of liabilities.</p><p><strong></strong>Filers also have to list the names of relatives up to the fourth degree of consanguinity or affinity who are &quot;to the best of their knowledge&quot; in government service. </p><p>The filing of SALN is mandated by the 1987 Constitution and two other laws: Republic Act 6713 or the Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees and Republic Act 3019 or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.</p><p>Civil servants submit their SALNs to the proper repository agency every year. </p><p>The other two instances in which public officials should submit their SALNs are within 30 days after assuming office and within 30 days after their separation from service.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>HOW TO USE SALN TO CHECK POTENTIAL CORRUPTION</strong></div><p>Lawyer Noel del Prado, who co-hosts the legal advice show <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Mi60BMks4g">&quot;Hello Attorney&quot; on DZMM</a>, said SALNs are an effective tool to ensure that public officials and employees are serving the government with integrity.</p><p>&quot;Dapat hindi ka nagkakaroon ng conflict of interest o kaya outright graft and corruption,&quot; he said.</p><p>(A government official should not have a conflict of interest and should not engage in outright graft and corruption.)</p><p>Investigators and the public can find clues of unexplained wealth by comparing the declared assets — which include real and personal properties — of a government official with their lawful income and profitable ventures, as well as their inheritances, explained Del Prado, who worked as a graft investigation and prosecution officer at the Office of the Ombudsman for nearly four years.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2025/10/21/barzaga-posts-saln-says-untransferred-inherited-assets-not-included-1613">Barzaga posts SALN, says &#x27;untransferred, inherited&#x27; assets not included</a></div><p>For example, if an official declares a P1 billion net worth, their SALN must show that that amount is reasonable because they have legitimate businesses as sources of wealth, he told ABS-CBN News in an interview.</p><p>&quot;Dapat makita doon lahat ng iyong lawful income... at lahat ng iyong explainable wealth kasi ang kaso dito ay unexplained wealth,&quot; Del Prado added.</p><p>(All of the official&#x27;s lawful income and explainable wealth should be reflected in their SALN because what we&#x27;re looking into here is unexplained wealth.)</p><p>Veteran journalist Malou Mangahas, co-founder of the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism, who has been following SALNs of government officials under recent presidents, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GIBfbtUxMuk">told ANC</a> that many political families in the Philippines hide wealth among their children and relatives.</p><p>An <a href="https://publicintegrity.org/accountability/the-state-of-the-presidents-finances-can-estrada-explain-his-wealth-part-two/">investigation</a> by the PCIJ into former President Joseph Estrada in 2000 revealed that he did not report in his SALNs millions of pesos worth of businesses tied to him, his wife, and his partners, and that his declared net worth was disproportionate to his accumulated wealth. </p><div><br/></div><div><strong>ASSETS ABROAD SHOULD ALSO BE DECLARED</strong></div><p>Public officials are also required to declare in their SALNs properties within or outside the Philippines, and whether they are used in trade or business, according to the Civil Service Commission.</p><p>&quot;Hindi nagdi-distinguish ang batas between saan &#x27;yan located, whether abroad &#x27;yan or dito &#x27;yan sa Pilipinas, lahat idedeklara mo &#x27;yan,&quot; Del Prado said.</p><p>(The law does not distinguish whether an asset is abroad or in the Philippines. All of them should be declared.)</p><p>Del Prado warned that a false declaration in the document could lead to the filing of a perjury case, noting that a good rule of thumb is, &quot;when in doubt, declare.&quot;</p><p>In 2012, Renato Corona was impeached as chief justice for failure to disclose assets in his SALNs, while Maria Lourdes Sereno was ousted as chief magistrate in 2018 over a quo warranto petition due to her non-filing of SALNs while she was a law professor at the University of the Philippines.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2025/10/22/speaker-dy-reconstitutes-saln-review-committee-1620">Speaker Dy reconstitutes SALN review committee</a></div><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2025/10/22/sc-says-release-of-salns-of-justices-to-be-decided-by-court-en-banc-1719">SC says release of SALNs of justices to be decided by court en banc</a></div><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/07/01/21/sc-junks-petition-saln-restriction">SC junks petition challenging Ombudsman’s SALN restrictions</a></div><div><br/></div><div><strong>WATCH</strong></div><div><strong><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/CTz8aDj5HNQ?&amp;t=2909s&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span></strong><br/></div>

<p>As Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla reopens public access to SALNs, what should we know about them, and how can they be used in the campaign against corruption?</p>

As Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla reopens public access to SALNs, what should we know about them, and how can they be used in the campaign against corruption?

​What is in a SALN, and how is it used to fight corruption?

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​What is in a SALN, and how is it used to fight corruption?

Rowegie Abanto,

ABS-CBN News

Published October 24, 2025 12:08 PM PHT

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Updated October 24, 2025 02:35 PM PHT

Read More:

SALN

Statement of assets liabilities and net worth

Ombudsman

Noel del Prado

PCIJ

Malou Mangahas

Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism

Corruption

Lifestyle Check

Flood Control

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What is in a SALN, and how is it used to fight corruption?

What is in a SALN, and how is it used to fight corruption?