Access to government-held information is the necessary condition for transparency in governance, and for empowering the citizenry to hold its elected officials to account. It is equally crucial to freedom of expression (FOE), the exercise of that right being premised on citizen possession, understanding, appreciation and utilization of accurate and meaningful information.

CHEERS TO InterAksyon.com for a story on President Benigno Aquino and his fading support for a Freedom of Information (FOI) bill.

IT IS the season of elections and all political parties and candidates are wont to spin a slew of promises yet again in their drive for votes.

THE BROAD coalition of Freedom of Information (FOI) advocates on Sunday urged Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. and Majority Leader Neptali Gonzales II to allow the sponsorship and start plenary debates today, Monday, on the FOI bill.

The year 2012 was particularly problematic for the Philippine press, primarily because of  the continuing harassment and killing of journalists. But Presidential and Congressional initiatives as well as default also contributed to making the year a difficult one for the news media.

INFORMATION IS what the Reproductive Health (RH) and Freedom of Information (FOI) bills are all about. The first would provide women with information on their own bodies—which for too many Filipinos apparently remains terra incognita even into their adulthood—and couples with the information they need that would enable them to plan their families. The second would make government-held information available to the public as a matter of right and in furtherance of State transparency and accountability.