Malacañang said yesterday President Duterte did not violate the law when he left the decision to release a copy of his Statement of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth to the Ombudsman, saying it was the repository of such documents in the first place.
Presidential spokesman Salvador Panelo made the statement after the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism said that multiple requests to obtain a copy of the President’s SALN were “tossed back and forth between the Office of the Executive Secretary and the Office of the Ombudsman.”
Panelo said Duterte did not violate the law by not releasing a copy his SALN himself like what Vice President Leni Robredo or previous presidents did.
“That does not mean that he will have to follow what they did. He follows the law. Law says you file and he filed,” he said.
“Maybe that’s their style. This President’s style is different but he has not transgressed any law,” he added. (Argyll Geducos)