Department of Agriculture(DA)

1. DA point persons or units that can entertain inquiries from the public; 2. Amount of DA funds reprogrammed, reallocated, and realigned; 3. Quick Response Fund allocations by DA since the start of the enhanced community quarantine on March 15, 2020; 4. Breakdown and brief description of the Plant, Plant, Plant Program.

March 29, 2020 Hon. Francisco T. Duque III Chair, Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases Gen. Carlito G. Galvez, Jr. National Implementer, National Action Plan Dear Secretary Duque and General Galvez, The Right to Know. Right Now! Coalition is lodging a public Freedom of Information (FOI) request on critical information related to the work of the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) and the implementers of the National Action Plan (NAP). Consistent with our Constitutional right to information and the government policy on FOI, we make this a public request beyond the procedures set forth in Executive Order 2, s. 2016 because the relevant information are best released immediately, publicly and updated regularly. In particular, we request for the following general information: o The organizational structure of the IATF and the NAP, with contact information of agency point persons or units that can entertain inquiries from the public; o The lay of the IATF plans and NAP implementation, with details on responsible agencies and units and contact information of relevant persons and units that can entertain inquiries from the public; o Medical monitors, with focus on the following: • The detailed action plan intended to address and contain the COVID-19 crisis, with particular emphasis on plugging the weaknesses in the healthcare system and addressing the increasing number of infection; • Data on COVID-19 transmission trend, with detailed patient data (age, gender, areas of residence, diagnosis and recovery status); details on tests done with focus on types and results (positive, negative, retests), time and geographic distribution; and etailed official protocol on testing, including who should be tested and how the sequence of processing is determined. This will guide those who assist in contact tracing and in projecting the behavior of the transmission. Any sensitive private information should be protected and redacted from the lists published; • Data on medical management: inventory and monitor of hospitals and health facilities per region/province/city, prioritizing those identified as COVID-19 referral facilities, an inventory of their medical capacity (bed, equipment, supplies, health personnel), their daily requirements for PPEs and related health products, and the assitance they get from the national government (distribution of test kits, PPEs, equipment and relevant supplies); o The status of the implementation of Republic Act 11469, or the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act of 2020, specifically on the following: • Funds reprogrammed, reallocated and realinged from savings and automatically appropriated: source and new appropiation • Budget items prioritized for augmentation: new allocations and use per Department or recipient unit • Social amelioration measures: - Emergency subsidy of PhP5,000-8,000 a month for two months to 18 million low-income households, and, - Expanded and enhanced Pantawid Pamilya Pilipino Program The urgency of the matter requires that the abovementioned information be generated and reported regularly in a public platform and included in the daily briefings of the IATF and implementers of the NAP. As a follow-up of this public request, we will also be writing individual agencies on the specific information that are critical at this time. The right to information is invoked to demand transparency and accountability from public offices, to access services and stake claims to other rights, and to facilitate positive initiatives like policy research, planning and on-the-ground action. All these we find relevant in this public request, but most importantly, we request the information so that Filipinos can be empowered in the fight against the dreaded COVID-19. We need transparency so people can feel reasonably confident that the government is taking care of them. We need transparency so they can assess what it is that they can best help in and how. We need timely information so parallel initiatives in different communities and contexts can best respond to what and where the gaps are. We need information so those we ask to volunteer for government and non-government initiatives know what exactly they are signing up for, feel how valued they are, and get the explanation on why despite this great value they may not be compensated justly. We need transparency so that people can report on where lapses take place and abuses happen, just as they can provide feedback and constructive inputs on initiatives that work. We need information so people know how best to protect themselves, their families and their communities. We need transparency because we want Filipinos to succeed in this fight. We appreciate the gravity of the situation and the load that the IATF and the entire government carry. But now, more than ever, with such great responsibility and equally substantial authority in the hands of government, the people deserve to know.

April 6, 2020 Hon. William D. Dar Secretary, Department of Agriculture Dear Secretary Dar, Greetings from the Right to Know, Right Now! (R2KRN) Coalition. We hope this letter finds you well despite the challenges we all confront amidst the COVID-19 crisis. R2KRN is a network of advocates from the academe, labor, youth, civil society organizations, and media pushing for the passage of the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act and the promotion of FOI practice in the country. R2KRN has previously written to the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) through your office to file a public Freedom of Information (FOI) request related to the plans and implementation of the IATF’s work and mandate. For the Department of Agriculture, may we request for the following important and urgent information, based on the implementation of Republic Act No. 11469, or the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act of 2020: o DA point persons or units that can entertain inquiries from the public • Name, designation and phone number/s • Designation from the central office down to the implementation units at the LGU level o Amount of DA funds reprogrammed, reallocated, and realigned • Sources of funds and new appropriations; • Budget items prioritized for augmentation: new allocations and disbursements; o Quick Response Fund allocations by DA since the start of the enhanced community quarantine on March 15, 2020 o Plant, Plant, Plant Program • Breakdown and brief description per component of the PhP 31 billion supplemental budget for the aforesaid program • number of beneficiaries by province/city/municipality; • total amounts disbursed by province/city/municipality; • date of fund release and designated disbursing agency/ies; • Components under the ‘Rice Resiliency Project’ with a reported allocation of PhP 7.5 billion of the approved Program budget; • Loan facility amounting to PhP 1 billion for farmers, fishers, and agri-fishery MSEs: • number of beneficiaries by province/city/municipality; • total amounts disbursed by province/city/municipality; • date of fund release and designated disbursing agency/ies; • National Food Authority’s palay procurement fund amounting to PhP 7 billion: • Guidelines on fund allocation and formula used. Recognizing both the urgent need for the above information and the unusual circumstances, where most government employees are working from home and are overwhelmed with day-to-day management of the crisis, we propose that the following transparency modes be employed in the release of the above-requested data/information: o Publish and post these data and information – and update these daily – in various accessible platforms, including a public general monitoring platform, official agency websites, radio/tv broadcast news websites; o Include these data and information in the regular briefings of the IATF and implementers of the NAP. o Make the data and information available in an open-data format (Excel or CSV not PDF or screenshots). o In the release and publication of the information above, sensitive private information (actual names and exact addresses of persons) should be protected and redacted, as necessary. Consistent with our Constitutional right to information and the government policy on FOI, we make this a public request beyond the procedures set forth in Executive Order 2, s. 2016 because the relevant information are best released immediately, publicly and updated regularly. For your feedback, you may contact Ms. Nadine Agustin at 09175240485 or through email at [email protected] or [email protected]. Thank you very much and we hope to hear from you soon.