CASE NO.

1
On 17 February 1994, Republic Act No. 7678 granted Stay Connected (SC) a 25-year franchise to install,
operate and maintain telecommunications systems throughout the Philippines. Section 5 of RA 7678
reads:
Sec. 5. Tax Provisions. - The grantee shall be liable to pay the same taxes on its real
estate, buildings, and personal property exclusive of this franchise as other persons or
corporations are now or hereafter may be required by law to pay. In addition thereto, the
grantee shall pay to the Bureau of Internal Revenue each year, within thirty (30) days
after the audit and approval of the accounts, a franchise tax as may be prescribed by law
of all gross receipts of the telephone or other telecommunications businesses transacted
under this franchise by the grantee; Provided, That the grantee shall continue to be liable
for income taxes payable under Title II of the National Internal Revenue Code pursuant
to Section 2 of Executive Order No. 72 unless the latter enactment is amended or
repealed, in which case the amendment or repeal shall be applicable thereto.
The grantee shall file the return with and pay the tax due thereon to the Commissioner of
Internal Revenue or his duly authorized representative in accordance with the National
Internal Revenue Code and the return shall be subject to audit by the Bureau of Internal
Revenue.
Four (4) years after, or sometime in 1998, the City Government of Ormoc City, Leyte issued a building
permit for the installation of SCs telecommunications facilities in Ormoc City. After the installation of
the facilities, SC applied with the Mayors Office of Ormoc City for a permit to operate. Because of a
discrepancy in the actual investment costs used in computing the prescribed fees for the clearances and
permits, SC was not able to secure a Mayors Permit for the year 1999. SC was also advised to settle its
unpaid realty taxes. However, SC claimed exemption from the payment of realty tax, citing the first
sentence of Section 5 of RA 7678, the Letter-Opinion of the Bureau of Local Government Finance
(BLGF) dated 8 April 1997, and the letter of the Office of the President dated 12 March 1996.
In 2000, the City Government of Ormoc, Leyte refused to issue a Mayors Permit to SC without payment
of its realty taxes.
On 24 June 2000, SC paid P98,690.89 under protest as fees for the permit to operate, but the City
Government of Ormoc, Leyte refused to accept the payment unless petitioner also paid the realty taxes.
On 5 July 2000, the City Government of Ormoc, Leyte threatened to close down SCs operations. Hence,
on 6 July 2000, SC instituted a complaint for prohibition and mandamus with prayer for a temporary
restraining order or writ of preliminary injunction. This case was raffled to RTC-Branch 1. On the same
date, the City Government of Ormoc, Leyte served a Cease and Desist Order on SC.
On 18 January 2001, during the pendency of the complaint, SC paid its realty taxes of P2,043,265.00
under protest. SC resumed its business, rendering the other issues raised in SCs complaint moot. The
only issue left for resolution is whether petitioner is exempt from the realty tax under Section 5 of RA
7678.
Decide the case.

CASE NO. 2
During the Eleventh Congress, twenty-four (24) bills seeking the conversion of numerous
municipalities into component cities were not acted upon by the members of the House of
Representatives.
On September 25, 2000, Senator See Ty introduced Senate Bill No. 2157 to amend Section 450
of the Local Government Code. The proposed legislation sought to increase the income requirement to
qualify for conversion into a city from P20,000,000.00 annual income to P100,000,000.00 locallygenerated income.
On March 20, 2001, Senate Bill No. 2157 was signed into law as R.A. No. 9009. It became
effective on June 30, 2001. As revised, Section 450 of the Local Government Code now states, among
others, that [a] municipality or a cluster of barangays may be converted into a component city if it has a
locally generated average annual income, as certified by the Department of Finance, of at least One
Hundred Million Pesos (P100,000,000.00) for the last two (2) consecutive years based on 2000 constant
prices.
Immediately after the opening of the Twelfth Congress and with R.A. No. 9009 already in full
force and effect, the House of Representatives adopted House Joint Resolution No. 29, entitled Joint
Resolution to Exempt Certain Municipalities Embodied in Bills Filed in Congress Before June 30,
2001 from the Coverage of Republic Act 9009. The resolution sought to exempt from the income
requirement of P100,000,000.00 in R.A. No. 9009 the twenty-four (24) municipalities whose conversions
into cities were not acted upon during the Eleventh Congress. The reasons for exempting these
municipalities were the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee investigation into the jueteng scandal; the
impeachment against former President Joseph Estrada by the House of Representatives; the aborted
impeachment proceedings in the Senate; the leadership reorganization in both Houses of Congress; the
EDSA Dos and EDSA Tres uprisings; the campaign period; and the May 2001 elections.
Notwithstanding the several public hearings, caucuses, dialogues, and informal discussions, the
favorable committee report did not translate into legislation. The Twelfth Congress ended without
favorable action.
During the Thirteenth Congress, the House of Representatives reinitiated the move, this time via
House Joint Resolution No. 1, and forwarded it to the Senate for approval.
On July 25, 2006, the Senate Committee on Local Government submitted its Committee Report
No. 84 recommending approval of House Joint Resolution No. 1, with amendments.
Out of the twenty-four (24) municipalities enumerated in House Joint Resolution No. 1, sixteen
(16) municipalities filed their individual cityhood bills. Each of the cityhood bills contained a common
provision exempting the particular municipality from the income requirement imposed by R.A. No. 9009.
On December 22, 2006, the House of Representatives approved the cityhood bills and transmitted
them to the Senate for its approval. The required consent of the Senate was attained.
When the cityhood bills were forwarded to the Office of the President, they were allowed to lapse
into law pursuant to Section 27(1), Article VI of the Constitution, after President Gloria MacapagalArroyo chose not to sign them.

Under the cityhood laws, respondent Commission on Elections (COMELEC) is directed to

conduct and supervise plebiscites in respondent municipalities within thirty (30) days from the approval
of each of the cityhood laws.
Subsequently, three (3) separate petitions for prohibition were filed by the League of Cities of the
Philippines, City of Iloilo, City of Calbayog, and Jerry P. Treas as taxpayer, against the COMELEC and
the sixteen (16) concerned municipalities.
The League of Cities of the Philippines, City of Iloilo, City of Calbayog, and Jerry P. Treas
collectively prayed for the issuance of lawful orders from the Court, enjoining COMELEC and the
concerned sixteen (16) municipalities from implementing the provisions of the challenged cityhood laws
and conducting plebiscites in the affected areas or, in the alternative, for the COMELEC not to proclaim
the plebiscite results. They likewise prayed that the cityhood laws be struck down as unconstitutional.
Decide the case.

CASE NO. 3
What is presented before the Commission is a petition for disqualification of Emilio Mabini Luna as
candidate for the office of Mayor of Kawit, Bulacan in the May 13, 2013 elections. The petition is based
on the ground that the respondent is an American citizen based on the record of the Bureau of
Immigration and misrepresented himself as a natural-born Filipino citizen.
In his answer to the petition filed on April 27, 2013, the respondent admitted that he is registered as a
foreigner with the Bureau of Immigration under Alien Certificate of Registration No. B-31632 and
alleged that he is a Filipino citizen because he was born in 1955 of a Filipino father and a Filipino
mother. He was born in San Francisco, California, U.S.A. on September 14, 1955, and is considered an
American citizen under the laws of the U.S.A. But notwithstanding his registration as an American
citizen, he did not lose his Filipino citizenship.
Rule on whether Emilio Mabini Luna is disqualified from the position for which he filed his certificate of
candidacy and whether he is eligible for the office he seeks to be elected.

CASE NO. 4
Article VII, Section 2 of the Constitution states that "No person may be elected President unless he is a
natural-born citizen of the Philippines, a registered voter, able to read and write, at least forty years of age
on the day of the election, and a resident of the Philippines for at least ten years immediately preceding
such election." The same qualifications are also required from those who want to run for Vice President,
as stated in Section 3 of the same Article.
Decide on whether Sen. Grace Poe is qualified to run as President of the Republic of the Philippines.

CASE NO. 5
During the last quarter of 1985, the officers of a civic organization known as the Samahan ng mga
Matatanda sa Bubon (SMB) launched a fund drive for the purpose of renovating the chapel of Barrio
Bubon, Inopacan, Leyte. The chairman of the group, Mario Tanglao, together with Luigi Dela Cruz,
approached Judge Serapio Mendoza, a resident of Bubon, and solicited from him a contribution of
P2,500.00. It is admitted that the solicitation was made without a permit from the Department of Social
Welfare and Development.
Based on the complaint of Judge Mendoza, an information was filed against Mario Tanglao, Luigi Dela
Cruz and the other members of SMB for violation of Presidential Decree No. 1564, or the Solicitation
Permit Law.
Decide on the case. For your guidance, the contents of Presidential Decree No. 1564 are quoted below.
PRESIDENTIAL DECREE No. 1564
AMENDING ACT NO. 4075, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS THE SOLICITATION PERMIT LAW
WHEREAS, the Solicitation Permit Law (ACT 4075) was enacted on October 27, 1933, and within the
forty-three years of its effectivity substantial social and economic changes have taken place in our country
so much so that said law is no longer attuned to present conditions;
WHEREAS, it has become customary and traditional for all duly organized private and semi-government
entities, associations and organizations to enjoin the cooperation and support of the public in the various
civic activities and projects which they undertake from time to time;
WHEREAS, the people's "bayanihan" spirit will be further enhance or promoted if they are directly or
indirectly involved in all charitable and public welfare activities; and
WHEREAS, there is an imperative need to give legal sanction and to regulate the solicitation of donations
and voluntary contributions from the public sector in order to obviate illegal fund drives;
NOW, THEREFORE, I, FERDINAND E. MARCOS, President of the Philippines, by virtue of the
powers vested in me by the Constitution, do hereby decree and order as follows:
Section 1. This Decree shall be known as the Solicitation Permit Law.
Section 2. Any person, corporation, organization, or association desiring to solicit or receive contributions
for charitable or public welfare purposes shall first secure a permit from the Regional Offices of the
Department of Social Services and Development as provided in the Integrated Reorganization Plan. Upon
the filing of a written application for a permit in the form prescribed by the Regional Offices of the
Department of Social Services and Development, the Regional Director or his duly authorized
representative may, in his discretion, issue a permanent or temporary permit or disapprove the
application. In the interest of the public, he may in his discretion renew or revoke any permit issued under
Act 4075.
Section 3. The Regional Director of the Department of Social System Services and Development may
require the person, corporation, organization or association duly authorized to solicit contributions for the

above-mentioned purposes to submit from time to time a verified report or information regarding their
activities, the period covered by the report, the collections and expenditures made and the names and
addresses of the contributions and persons to whom assistance was rendered from the funds obtained.
This report or information shall be open for inspection of the general public. The Regional Director or his
duly authorized representative may, for the protection of the public, likewise investigate the books,
papers, affairs and activities related to the aforestated purposes of any such person, corporation,
organization, or association: Provided, however, That the provisions of Section 2 of this Decree shall not
apply to any organization or institution established for charitable or public welfare purposes in its
campaign for raising funds or soliciting public subscriptions or any means for collecting funds which has
been authorized by Executive Proclamation.
Section 4. Upon approval of the application for a solicitation permit, a fee of Twenty-Five Pesos (P25.00)
shall be paid to the cashier of the Department of Social Services and Development. The money collected
as fee for the issuance of solicitation permits shall accrue to the Department as aid for the maintenance of
its institutions and social services for its clientele.
Section 5. The Secretary of the Department of Social Services and Development shall develop programs
and services for the needy and promulgate rules and regulations for the implementation of this Decree.
Section 6. Any person found violating the provisions hereof or the rules and regulations promulgated
pursuant hereto shall upon, conviction, suffer the penalty of imprisonment of not more than 1 year or a
fine of not more than P1,000.00 or both such imprisonment and fine, at the discretion of the court:
Provided, however, That if the offender is a corporation, organization or association, the penalty shall be
imposed upon the guilty officer or officers of the corporation, organization or association; and if such
guilty officers is an alien, he shall be deported after serving sentence without further proceedings.
Section 7. This decree shall take effect immediately.