MEMORANDUM CIRCULAR NO. 35
MEMORANDUM CIRCULAR NO. 35 -
DIRECTING ALL DEPARTMENTS, BUREAUS, OFFICES AND INSTRUMENTALITIES OF
THE GOVERNMENT, INCLUDING GOVERNMENT-OWNED AND CONTROLLED CORPORATIONS
TO IMPLEMENT THE PUBLICATION OF SERVICE GUIDES AND THE POSTING OF
WORKFLOW CHARTS AND PROVIDING GUIDELINES THEREFOR
WHEREAS, pursuant to Article XI, Section 1
of the Constitution, public office is a public trust, and public
officers and employees must at all times be accountable to the people
and serve them with, among others, utmost responsibility and
efficiency;
WHEREAS, pursuant to the Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for
Public Officials and Employees (Republic [R.A.] Act No. 6713), public
officials and employees shall extend prompt, courteous and adequate
service to the public and shall, unless otherwise provided by law or
required by the public interest, provide information of their policies
and procedures in clear and understandable language, ensure openness of
information, public consultations and hearings whenever appropriate,
encourage suggestions, simplify and systematize policy, rules and
procedures and avoid red tape;
WHEREAS, pursuant to the Rules Implementing the Code of Conduct and
Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees, every department,
office or agency shall develop a service guide or its functional
equivalent which shall be regularly updated and made available to the
transacting public, and shall post a workflow chart showing procedures
or flow of documents in conspicuous places in the department, office or
agency for the information and guidance of all concerned;
WHEREAS, under the National Socio-Economic Pact of 2001, the Government
is committed to providing more efficient and effective governance
through the posting of flowcharts, documents required, fees, processing
time, and persons/officials responsible for the evaluation and approval
of licenses, permits, proposals, including the publication of a
citizens handbook on the matter;
WHEREAS, there is a need to provide guidelines for the development and
publication of service guides and the posting of workflow charts by all
departments, bureaus, offices and instrumentalities of the Government,
including government-owned and controlled corporations.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, GLORIA MACAPAGAL-ARROYO, President of the Republic
of the Philippines, by virtue of the powers vested in me by law, do
hereby order:
Section 1. All departments, bureaus, offices and
instrumentalities of the Government, including government-owned and
controlled corporations are hereby directed to comply with the
provisions of R.A. No. 6713 and its Implementing Rules on the
development and publication of service guides in accordance with the
following guidelines:
a.
The service guide, in the form of a brochure or handbook, shall state
in simple, clear and unambiguous terms the following information:
i.
Brief information about the agency, its mandate and functions including
all the services the agency provides to the public such as the conduct
of inspections, registrations, etc., the issuance or grants of
certificates, licenses, clearances, passports, permits, etc., the
receipt of tax or duty payments and the like;
ii. The
procedure or sequence of steps to be followed;
iii. The
documents required relative to the service;
iv. The amount
of fees, if any, relative to the service and the legal bases thereof;
v. The service
standard for every particular service of the agency, e.g., processing
and issuance of driver's license is completed in one (1) hour;
processing and release of business permit is completed in three (3)
days;
vi. The
service pledge of the agency;
vii. The
rights and responsibilities of persons availing of the service;
viii. The
procedure for filing complaints and providing suggestions and feedback;
ix. Other such
information as the head of the agency may deem necessary to improve the
delivery of services.
b.
The service guide shall be updated on a regular basis.
c. The service
guide shall be made available to the public through the various media,
including, when feasible, posting on the internet.
Sec. 2. All departments, bureaus, offices and
instrumentalities of the Government, including government-owned and
controlled corporations are hereby directed to comply with the
provisions of R.A. No. 6713 and its Implementing Rules on the posting
of workflow charts in accordance with the following guidelines:
a.
The workflow chart shall illustrate in a simple but complete manner the
procedure or sequence of steps in order to avail of the services of the
agency.
b. The
workflow chart shall likewise state the following information:
i.
The documentary requirements relative to the service;
ii. The amount
of fees, if any, relative to the service and the legal bases thereof;
iii. The name
and/or designation of the officers/employees in charge of each step,
except where confidentiality is required, in which case, the name
and/or designation of the person(s) need not be posted;
iv. The normal
processing time required or allocated for each step as determined by
the agency;
v. The service
standard or total amount of time for the processing/procedure until the
point of delivery of the service; and
vi. Other such
information as the head of the agency may deem necessary to improve the
delivery of the service.
c.
The workflow chart shall be in both English and Filipino: Provided,
That in localities where a particular dialect is predominantly or
widely used and understood, said workflow charts shall, in addition, be
written in the said dialect.
d. The
workflow chart shall be posted in conspicuous areas in the agency
within the vicinity where the service is rendered or performed.
e. Deviations
from the standards indicated in the workflow chart resulting in the
delay in the delivery of service shall be grounds for a
complaint.
Sec. 3. All departments, bureaus, offices and
instrumentalities of the Government, including government-owned and
controlled corporations shall, as necessary, adopt mechanisms to avoid
long queues and to ensure that requests for a particular service are
attended to in an orderly manner and with dispatch on a "first come,
first served" basis.
Sec. 4. Local government units are encouraged to
adopt the foregoing guidelines on the publication of service guides and
the posting of workflow charts.
Sec. 5. Compliance reports on the publication of
the service guide, the posting of workflow charts, and the adoption of
queuing mechanisms shall be submitted to the Office of the President
within sixty (60) days from the effectivity of this Memorandum Circular.
Sec. 6. Pursuant to R.A. No. 6713, the Civil
Service Commission shall monitor and, if necessary, conduct an actual
inspection of the agency, to ensure the compliance by all agencies of
the Government with R.A. No. 6713, its Implementing Rules and this
Memorandum Circular.
Sec. 7. This Memorandum Circular shall take effect
immediately upon approval.
City of Manila, March 17, 2003
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Since 19.07.98.