CSC order on non-partisan activities `too punitive,’ says Adiong
Civil Service Commission building. File Photo
MANILA, Philippines –Lanao del Sur 1st District Rep. Zia Alonto Adiong believes the recent order from the Civil Service Commission (CSC) on social media use is overarching and punitive.
That despite the fact that he agrees that regular government employees should not engage in partisan political activities during an election season.
Adiong on Thursday was asked about CSC’s Memorandum Circular (MC) No. 03 series of 2025 wherein government officials and employees were warned against engaging in political activity on social media — even something as simple as “liking” or “sharing” a post.
READ: CSC warns gov’t workers: Don’t like, share political posts of bets
According to the lawmaker, it is true that public servants should be non-partisan toward candidates since it may give a bad impression, especially as the workers are connected with the government. However, he hopes CSC will reconsider the directive.
“For my personal take on that ah, as a civil servant, if you are a regular employee of the government, I agree that you should not take part actively in partisan politics, meaning you don’t campaign for any candidates because you’ve been hired by the government. The resources that you are getting, your main livelihood is coming from the public funds. I mean, your salary comes from taxpayers’ money,” Adiong said.
‘Simple like in Facebook’
“So it’s just but proper and appropriate and prudent for a civil servant not to engage himself or herself actively in partisan politics […] But something as simple like in Facebook and other accounts, that to me is overarching, it’s too punitive. I hope that the Civil Service Commission would reconsider their policy on this,” he added.
According to Adiong, not allowing government employees to react is “too restrictive.”
“To me, it’s not tantamount to engaging in partisan politics just by simply liking campaigns, sorties being uploaded on social media, et cetera, by civil servants,” he said.
“I hope that we can still maintain that our civil servants remains to be nonpartisan and apolitical, but as simple liking, for a very simple reason that they like the messaging, without endorsing or campaigning for the candidate, is for me too restrictive and too punitive,” he added.
On Wednesday, the CSC said that the memorandum, dated last March 31, 2025, reminded the government employees and officials not to directly or indirectly engage in any partisan political activity for the 2025 midterm elections and the first Bangsamoro Parliamentary elections — saying that these are mandated by the 1987 Constitution and other laws.
CSC directives
Other sectors have also questioned CSC’s directives. Earlier, former Bayan Muna lawmaker Ferdinand Gaite said that the memorandum “tramples upon the very rights that civil servants are supposed to uphold and defend.”
On Thursday, the CSC clarified that government workers were allowed to like and share political posts as long as these “[do] not solicit support” for politicians or political parties.
READ: CSC: Liking, sharing political posts allowed, but don’t solicit support
“The Civil Service Commission reiterates that government employees may like, share, comment on, or repost election-related content on social media for as long as these actions do not solicit support for or against any candidate or party during the campaign period,” it said.
“The CSC emphasized the need for prudence in using social media to avoid engaging in partisan political activities,” it added.
