Sometime last month, on different dates, the Tribune sent separate letters to the Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Office (PENRO) and the Department of Education (DepEd) Division of Catanduanes requesting information on their recent official activities.
The PENRO letter, addressed to PENR Officer Imelda D. Baltazar, sought data on the topics discussed during the orientation for the deputation of Wildlife Enforcement Officers (WEOs) in the province of Catanduanes last Feb. 6-7, 2025.
On the other hand, the DepEd request received by the division on Feb. 27 was for the list of awardees and other details concerning the conduct of the Gawad Parangal 2024: Division Stakeholders’ Recognition and Awarding Ceremonies last Feb. 23, 2025.
It took 12 days for the PENRO to send a reply, which is understandable considering that such requests according to some insiders have to be approved by the Office of the Regional Director. While the data provided did not answer one of this paper’s queries, it was enough to be the basis of a relevant article.
The DepEd Catanduanes division office was a bit faster, first responding through a text message on Mar. 3 and followed by a letter that should raise concerns not only among the local media but also campus journalists of the division, some of whom will be competing in the National Schools Press Conference 2025 in Vigan, Ilocos Sur in the second week of April.
In the SDO’s reply dated March 6, 2025 and signed by Senior Education Program Specialist Marife B. Brequillo, who also heads the Social Mobilization & Networking Unit, and the division Officer-in-Charge, Assistant Schools Division Superintendent Cecile C. Ferro, what stood out was the second paragraph:
“We wish to inform you that your request will be considered. However, please be advised that the draft of the news article related to the event must be submitted to this Office for review prior to its publication.”
If this is not prior restraint on the freedom of the press, DepEd must think we are under a second Marcos dictatorship.
As defined, prior restraint refers to government actions that prevent speech or expression before it occurs, which is why it is considered the most extreme form of censorship.
Article III, Section 4 of the 1987 Constitution guarantees this freedom in a democratic society, stating that: “No law shall be passed abridging the freedom of speech, of expression, or of the press, or the right of the people peaceably to assemble and petition the government for redress of grievances.”
While prior restraint is presumed unconstitutional, the country’s legal system recognizes certain exceptions where prior restraint may be valid: in times of war or emergency when national security is at stake; when the material is deemed obscene; when it violates libel laws; when it incites violence, rebellion, sedition or lawless action; and/or when it comments on ongoing court proceedings.
Clearly, the proposed article on the Gawad Parangal would not be in violation of these exceptions to the Constitutional protection from prior restraint.
Even Republic Act 7079, which provided for the development and promotion of campus journalism, states in its declaration of policy to uphold and protect the freedom of the press even at the campus level as a means of encouraging critical and creative thinking, among others.
But DepEd’s action cannot be the offshoot of the executive order on the Freedom of Information (FOI), which mandates full public disclosure of all government transactions involving public interest, subject to certain limitations.
Nor would it be in accordance with the Data Privacy Act of 2012, which covers only personal information and not the names of the awardees in the Gawad Parangal.
The Tribune could have simply gotten the needed data from a Facebook post but chose not to do so for obvious reasons.
It makes you wonder if DepEd Catanduanes genuinely believes it is promoting campus journalism and upholding the freedom of the press at the school level when its response to the Tribune request for information says otherwise.