President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. supports efforts to promote transparency and accountability in government, Malacañang said Monday, in response to a proposed law requiring public officials to waive their bank secrecy rights.

The measure, recently refiled by Senate President Francis Escudero, seeks to mandate all government officials and employees—except those serving in an honorary capacity—to sign a waiver allowing the Office of the Ombudsman to examine their bank accounts and investments, including foreign currency deposits. The proposal aims to strengthen anti-corruption initiatives and restore public trust in government institutions.

Palace Press Officer Claire Castro, speaking at a Malacañang briefing, said the President is in favor of such a move.

“Ang pangulo po ay sang-ayon po at dapat lang natin itong ipatupad ang accountability at transparency sa gobyerno. So hindi po tayo magkakaroon ng negatibong sagot mula sa Pangulo,” Castro said.

Similar proposals have been introduced in previous Congresses but failed to gain enough momentum to pass into law.

Escudero said the law on bank secrecy, originally intended to encourage savings and investment, has become a tool for concealing corruption.

“The laws may have served their purpose in the past, but their rigidity now allows corruption to thrive under the guise of confidentiality,” said Escudero.

He added: “We are the last country that still maintains absolute bank secrecy. That distinction doesn’t safeguard democracy—it undermines it.”