Points of view on SALNs, RFIDs and Phil Ids

THE sought-after SALN or Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth of Associate Justice Marvic Mario Victor Leonen has gained public attention again with the filing of an impeachment complaint against him before the House of Representatives on December 7 by one Edwin Cordevilla.

Varying opinions have been issued in the media concerning the period by which the SALN can be made available to the public. Even retired Supreme Court Justice Antonio Carpio wrote in his column in another newspaper that, “Even if we assume, for the sake of argument, that Justice Leonen failed to file his SALNs while he was teaching at the University of the Philippines, any such crime has now prescribed. In the 2018 case of Melita del Rosario v. People of the Philippines, the Supreme Court ruled that the prescriptive period for failure to file a SALN is eight years. Justice Leonen left the University of the Philippines more than 10 years ago.”