Department of Justice(DOJ)

Resending to you our reply to your request for information dated 11 December 2016 for monitoring purposes. Note that this request for information was already acted upon within the 15 day working period. ___________________________________________________________________________________ FROM : JUVY R. MANWONG Assistant Secretary FOR : ALVIN MERITT THRU : IRENE DULIN Communications Division SUBJECT: RESPONSE TO THE FOI QUERY TO THE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE OF MR. ALVIN MERITT DATE: 27 December 2016 Greetings! This is in response to your query dated 11 December 2016 seeking information relative to the contents and details of the documents allegedly obtained from the search made in the condominium unit of the late Jesse Robredo after his death, which were allegedly turned over to the Department of Justice (DOJ). We regret to inform you that we cannot accommodate your request for the following reasons: a.) We made a diligent search of the available records under the Office of the Secretary of Justice and all concerned offices of the DOJ. Unfortunately, the records of the concerned offices show that no secured documents from the late Jesse Robredo were turned-over to the Department of Justice. b.) While we acknowledge your right of access to information as recognized by the Constitution, existing laws or jurisprudence prohibit the premature disclosure of secured documents, if there are any, as such might prejudice the parties involved and affect the conduct of any investigation or proceeding. Personal information may be disclosed only if it will be a matter of public concern or interest, will not meddle or disturb the private life or family relations of the individual; and it is not prohibited by law or regulations. The Data Privacy Act of 2012 stressed that information, such as the requested secured documents, is deemed confidential. The privacy of persons must be protected if the disclosure or providing of the same would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy, personal information or records, or includes sensitive personal information. Further, the said secured documents, which are the product of a search operation conducted by the then DILG Undersecretary Rico Puno, might contain personal information, which, if disclosed, might disturb the private life of anyone or might meddle into the family affair of the late DILG Secretary Robredo. Anent thereto, we submit that your query may be more properly addressed by the Department of Interior and Local Government, as the party which conducted the alleged search. We do hope that this sufficiently answers your query. For further inquiry, you may visit the DOJ website at www.doj.gov.ph. Thank you. Truly yours, JUVY R. MANWONG (Sgd.)