After the passing of City Ordinance No. 2025-04 or the City of San Fernando, La Union Freedom of Information Ordinance, the City Government, through the City Legal Office (CLO), conducted an orientation on freedom of information (FOI) to selected city employees and the Central Appeals and Review Committee (CARC) on August 14, 2025 at the People’s Hall.

To provide a brief background on the FOI, the CLO invited Mr. Jedel Ervin M. Tabamo, former City Governance Coordinator of the USAID CHANGE Project. Mr. Tabamo also led the orientation on the role of the CARC and the FOI team of the City Government of San Fernando, La Union.

Moreover, Atty. Jestherin G. Baliton and Atty. Cee Jaye L. Gumangan of the CLO presented the FOI Ordinance of the city and highlighted its salient provisions. They also presented the Executive Order creating the CARC, reiterating its roles and responsibilities for the implementation of the FOI Ordinance.

In addition, Ms. Richelle V. Fusilero and Mr. Tabamo led the discussion on the draft Implementing Rules and Regulation for the said ordinance, to which the attending city employees also provided their inputs.

Key activities to support the implementation of the FOI Ordinance were also identified and planned during the activity.

The passing of the FOI Ordinance is in accordance with the Executive Order No. 02 of the Office of the President of the Republic of the Philippines, operationalizing in the executive branch the people’s constitutional right to information.

Through the FOI Ordinance, the City Government’s commitment to upholding integrity becomes more strengthened, leading us to a more transparent #PeoplesCity of #SanFernandoTayo.