By Dean Aubrey Caratiquet
Aligned with the administration’s firm stance against corruption, the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) has opened a new front in establishing mechanisms to help curb this malpractice.
This, as the agency’s Procurement Service signed a Data Sharing Agreement (DSA) with the Office of the Ombudsman on Monday, which provides the latter with access to the Philippine Government Electronic Procurement System (PhilGEPS).
The agreement means that when investigators need relevant procurement records for authorized official purposes, they will no longer have to depend solely on the traditional process of separately requesting documents and waiting for records to be transmitted.
This process consumes a significant amount of time and opens opportunities for the system to be exploited for nefarious purposes by bad actors, which may affect the integrity of investigations in certain cases.
Instead, authorized personnel will be able to examine relevant PhilGEPS information—including supplier and merchant registration records, beneficial ownership information for corporate registrations, procurement lifecycle documents, supplier participation and eligibility information, and permitted audit trails—subject to strict access, privacy, security, logging, and monitoring controls.
Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla expounded, “Pinaiikli ng kasunduang ito ang distansyang iyan. Kapag nakikita ng Ombudsman ang buong rekord ng procurement, lumilitaw ang mga ugnayan. Ang parehong mga pangalan, ang parehong mga address, ang parehong mga padron. Kumukonti ang mga lugar na mapagtataguan.”
He, moreover, said that the DSA would minimize delays and enhance accountability within the process of obtaining, transmitting, and perusing procurement records or documents—with clearly defined purposes and safeguards in place to prevent misuse.
Budget Secretary Kim Robert de Leon added, “When the right information reaches the right institution at the right time—and when that institution has both the mandate and the courage to act on it—we do more than uncover problems. We learn from them. We correct them. And, hopefully, we prevent them from happening again.”
Deterrence through oversight
The agreement is anchored on Republic Act No. 10173 or the Data Privacy Act, Republic Act No. 12009 or the New Government Procurement Act (NGPA), and the constitutional mandate of the Office of the Ombudsman.
Both institutions will maintain confidentiality and security controls, designate their respective Data Protection Officers, and subject access to authentication, authorization, logging, auditing, and regular compliance monitoring.
However, it is important to note that both DBM and the independent body may exchange feedback in case inconsistencies and data-quality concerns arise during the usage of procurement information under the Agreement.
PS-DBM Executive Director Atty. Genmaries Entredicho-Caong emphasized, “This DSA is not simply about making data accessible; it is about ensuring that the data is accessed and processed responsibly, lawfully, and for clearly defined purposes.”
The DSA resonated with United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Philippines Resident Representative Christophe Bahuet and United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) Philippines Country Manager Amielle del Rosario, who both praised the DBM for this timely initiative that negates the need for issuing subpoenas just to gain access to procurement records.
The Budget chief declared, “Trust is built when transactions can be traced. When questions can be answered with evidence. When institutions are willing to be scrutinized. And when the government is willing to correct itself when weaknesses are found.”
Ombudsman Remulla concluded, “The Filipino people have waited long enough for a government that does not hide from them. Let us give them one.”
jpv
