QuestionsQuestions (GENERAL ORDER NO. 31)
General Order No. 31 invokes the President’s powers as Commander-in-Chief and cites Proclamation No. 1081 (Sept. 21, 1972) and General Order No. 1 (Sept. 22, 1972), as well as General Order No. 8 (Sept. 27, 1972) as the authority for constituting military tribunals.
It further amends General Order No. 12 by adding a new case category: “Any violation of the provisions of Republic Act No. 1405 on secrecy of bank deposits,” designated as case to be tried and decided by military tribunals, exclusive of civil courts.
The Government aimed to encourage people to deposit money in banks, discourage private hoarding, and ensure deposits could be properly utilized for capital formation and national economic development—thus requiring the secrecy of savings deposits to be zealously guarded.
RA 1405 provides that all deposits with banks or banking institutions in the Philippines are absolutely confidential and may not be examined, inquired into, or looked into by any person, government official, bureau, or office, except in specific situations.
The text lists: (1) upon written permission of the depositor; (2) in cases of impeachment; (3) upon order of a competent court in cases of bribery or dereliction of duty of public officials; and (4) in cases where the money deposited or invested is the subject of litigation.
It prohibits any official or employee of a banking institution from disclosing, to any person other than in the express cases mentioned above, any information concerning deposits.
It makes such violations among the cases to be tried and decided by military tribunals constituted under General Order No. 8, explicitly stating “exclusive of the civil courts.”
It implies that civil courts are excluded as the forum for trying and deciding the specified violations, which would fall within the competence of the military tribunals as provided in the amendment.
It declared June 29, 1973 to June 29, 1974 as Savings Consciousness Year with the objective of inculcating awareness of the importance of savings for capital formation and national economic progress—supporting the need to protect deposit secrecy.
Executive Order No. 1115 created a National Commission on Savings to accelerate capital formation through non-inflationary means, particularly savings with banks and other financial intermediaries; it is relevant because deposit secrecy is portrayed as essential to achieve higher savings.
It refers to discouraging people from keeping money outside financial institutions so that it can be mobilized for economic development; deposit secrecy is emphasized as a safeguard that encourages people to deposit.
The text indicates that deposits are absolutely confidential except upon written permission of the depositor; thus, confidentiality is not absolute in the sense that it yields to the enumerated exceptions.
The text specifies cases of bribery or dereliction of duty of public officials.
When the money deposited or invested is the subject of litigation—i.e., the confidentiality restriction does not apply to inquiries necessary in that dispute.
It is characterized as one of the cases that must be tried and decided by military tribunals authorized under General Order No. 8.
General Order No. 31 expressly “further amended” General Order No. 12 by adding the RA 1405 secrecy-violation case category to those tried by military tribunals.
Whether, and how, the constitutional or statutory protection of deposit secrecy interacts with prosecutorial and adjudicatory authority of military tribunals, especially considering that confidentiality restrictions still apply except for recognized exceptions.