QuestionsQuestions (OMB OFFICE ORDER NO. 05-14, S. 2005)
Except as provided in the Office Order, incumbent Ombudsman officials and employees must not meet, transact, or deal directly or indirectly, on any matter with former Ombudsman officials/employees who are litigants or counsel in any case or CPL matter pending before the Office, as well as cases pending before the Sandiganbayan. The prohibition also covers dealing with the counsel, agent, or representative of the former official/employee.
They may interact during trials, clarificatory hearings, and/or formal hearings of cases under preliminary investigation or administrative adjudication, and in cases pending before the Sandiganbayan, but only in a manner consistent with, or necessary in, the conduct of the proceedings.
They may interact when the former officials/employees represent on record private complainants and prosecution witnesses (including counsel and agents), and/or when acting as volunteer lawyers for the Office—limited to cases where they are assisting the prosecution.
For requests for assistance, the PAB may extend assistance to former Ombudsman officials/employees only on official business.
If due to unavoidable circumstances there is a meeting by chance or accident between incumbent Ombudsman officials/employees and former Ombudsman officials/employees covered by the prohibition, such meeting is recognized as falling within a permissible circumstance.
Incumbent Ombudsman officials/employees shall not disclose any confidential information acquired in the course of their employment to former Ombudsman officials/employees.
Pursuant to Section 7(c) of RA 6713, they shall not use or divulge confidential or classified information known by reason of their office and not made public either to further private interests/give undue advantage to anyone or to prejudice the public interest.
Incumbent officials/employees who have dealt, met, or transacted with former officials/employees within the exceptions must report in writing within three (3) working days to the IAB.
No. For situations covered by Section 1(a) (interactions during official proceedings), the duty to report described in the preceding sentence does not apply.
Any act of impropriety, indiscretion, attempted influence, or lobbying encountered between former officials/employees and incumbent officials/employees in the performance of the latter’s official duties must be reported in writing within three (3) working days to the IAB through their immediate superior.
The IAB maintains a registry for reports of interaction connected with any CPL matter or any case pending before the Office or the Sandiganbayan.
The registry must include: (a) the name of the former Ombudsman official/employee; (b) the name of the incumbent official/employee with whom they interacted; and (c) date/time/purpose of the meeting/visit, docket number and title of any case/CPL matter or request taken up, and other relevant details, if any.
For PAB requests for assistance involving former Ombudsman officials/employees, another registry is maintained by the PAB for that purpose.
The IAB shall make a monthly report to the Tanodbayan, and this report must include the requests for assistance acted upon by the PAB involving former officials/employees as contained in the corresponding PAB monthly report.
Incumbent officials and employees are prohibited from recommending the hiring of the services of former Ombudsman officials/employees in private practice to litigants, prospective litigants, or anyone dealing with the Office.
To discourage the wrong perception that incumbent officials/employees are peddlers of undue patronage.
Any violation is a ground for disciplinary action against the Ombudsman official or employee under the pertinent provisions of the Civil Service Laws and rules.