Documente Academic
Documente Profesional
Documente Cultură
L-16887
MIGUEL
R.
CORNEJO, petitioner,
vs.
ANDRES GABRIEL, provincial governor of Rizal,
and the PROVINCIAL BOARD OF RIZAL,
composed of ANDRES GABRIEL, PEDRO
MAGSALIN and CATALINO S. CRUZ, respondents.
The petitioner in this case, the suspended municipal
president of Pasay, Rizal, seeks by these proceedings
inmandamus to have the provincial governor and the
provincial board of the Province of Rizal temporarily
restrained from going ahead with investigation of the
charges filed against him pending resolution of the
case, and to have an order issue directed to the
provincial governor commanding him to return the
petitioner to his position as municipal president of
Pasay. The members of the provincial board have
interposed a demurrer based on the ground that this
court has no right to keep them from complying with
the provisions of the law. The provincial governor has
filed an answer to the petition, in which he alleges as
a special defense that numerous complaints have
been received by him against the conduct of Miguel
R. Cornejo, municipal president of Pasay; that these
complaints were investigated by him; that he came to
the conclusion that agreeable to the powers conferred
upon provincial governors, the municipal president
should be temporarily suspended, and that an
investigation is now being conducted by the provincial
board.
Counsel for petitioner has argued, with much
eloquence, that his client has been deprived of an
office, to which he was elected by popular vote,
without having an opportunity to be heard in his own
defense. The respondents reply that all that the
provincial governor and the provincial board have
done in this case is to comply with the requirements
of the law which they are sworn to enforce. Obviously,
therefore, we should first have before us the
applicable provisions of the Philippine law bearing on
the subject of suspension of public officers.
xxx
xxx
b.
Registration
and
Accreditation of Unions under
OPR; and
c. Accreditation of Agencies to
take
final
action
on
appointments under OPIA.
(Signed)
Patricia
Chairman
A.
Sto.
Tomas
(Signed)
Did
not
participate
Ramon P. Ereneta, Jr., Thelma P.
Gaminde
Commissioner Commissioner
Attested
(Signed)
Carmencita
Giselle
Board Secretary V 2
by:
B.
Dayson
of
the
(2)
The
Merit
Board . . .
System
Executive
Protection
(4)
The
Office
Management . . .
of
Planning
and
of
Central
Personnel
Human
Resource
of
the
of
Corporate
Retirement
first
instance,
upon
the
nature
of
the
appointment (Hojilla vs. Marino, 121 Phil. 280 [1965].)
Such that the rule which proscribes transfers without
consent as anathema to the security of tenure is
predicated upon the theory that the officer involved is
appointed not merely assigned to a particular
station (Miclat v. Ganaden, et al., 108 Phil. 439
[1960]; Jaro v. Hon. Valencia, et al., 118 Phil. 728
[1963]). [Brillantes v. Guevarra, 27 SCRA 138 (1969)]
The
appointment of
Navarro
as
principal does not refer to any particular
station or school. As such, she could be
assigned to any station and she is not
entitled to stay permanently at any specific
school. (Bongbong v. Parado, 57 SCRA
623) When she was assigned to the Carlos
Albert High School, it could not have been
with the intention to let her stay in said
school
permanently.
Otherwise,
her
appointment would have so stated.
Consequently, she may be assigned to any
station or school in Quezon City as the
exigencies of public service require even
without consent. As this Court ruled
inBrillantes v. Guevarra, 27 SCRA 138,
143
Plaintiff's confident stride
falters. She took too loose a view
of
the
applicable
jurisprudence. Her refuge behind
the mantle of security of tenure
guaranteed by the Constitution is
not impenetrable. She proceeds
upon the assumption that she
occupies her station in Sinalang
Elementary
School
by
appointment.
But
her
first
appointment as Principal merely
reads thus: "You are hereby
appointed
a
Principal
(Elementary School) in the
Bureau of Public Schools,
Department
of
March 4, 1925
VICENTE
SEGOVIA, petitioner-appellee,
vs.
PEDRO NOEL, respondent-appellant.
MALCOLM, J.:
The question to be decided on this appeal is whether
that portion of Act No. 3107 which provides, that
justices of the peace and auxiliary justices of the
peace shall be appointed to serve until they have
reached the age of sixty- five years, should be given
retroactive or prospective effect.
JOHNSON, J.:
This action was commenced in the Court of First
Instance of the Province of Ilocos Norte. Its purpose
was to obtain the extraordinary legal writ of quo
warranto. The petition was denied by the trial court
and the plaintiff appealed. The question presented by
the appeal are:
(a) Is the provision of Act No. 3107, in so far
as it provides that "justices of the peace shall
be appointed to serve until they have
reached the age of 65 years," valid and
constitutional, when applied to justices of the
peace appointed under Act No. 2041, section
1, to serve "during good behavior?" And,
(b) Is the present action barred by the
statutes of limitations?
The facts involved in the decision of those questions
are as follows:
(a) That the said Julio Agcaoili was
appointed as justice of the peace of the
municipality of Laoag, of the Province of
Ilocos Norte, by His Excellency, Francis
Burton Harrison, on the 25th day of March,
1916, with authority "to have and to hold the
said office with all the powers, privileges, and
emoluments thereunto of right appertaining
unto him, subject to the conditions
prescribed by law.
JULIO
AGCAOILI, plaintiff-appellant,
vs.
ALBERTO SUGUITAN, defendant-appellee.
Respectfully,
(Sgd.) LUIS P. TORRES
Undersecretary of Justice
Said letter was received by Julio Agcaoili, the justice
of the peace, on the 26th day of April, 1923. It was
handed to him by the clerk of the Court of First
Instance of the Province of Ilocos Norte.
(d) It will be noted that in the letter of April 9, 1923, the
Secretary of Justice directed or ordered Julio Agcaoili,
then justice of the peace, "upon receipt of said letter,
to cease to be a justice of the peace." Against the
order contained in said letter of April 9th, Julio Agcaoili
entered a protest dated April 28, 1923, in the following
language:
JUSTICE OF THE PEACE OF COURT OF
LAOAG,
ILOCOS
NORTE
P. I.
April 28, 1923
The
Hon.
LUIS
TORRES
Undersecretary
of
Justice
of
the Philippine Islands
SIR: The undersigned, Julio Agcaoili, justice
of the peace of Laoag, capital of the
Province of Ilocos Norte, has the honor to
state that on April 26, 1923, he received,
through the clerk of the Court of First
Instance
of
Ilocos
Norte,
your
communication of April 9, 1923, informing
the undersigned that, having attained the
age of 65 years, he ceased to be justice of
the peace of Laoag under the provisions of
section 1 of Act No. 3107, amending section
203 of the Administrative Code, which is Act
No. 2711 enacted in the year 1919, and
which section 1 of said Act No. 3107
provides in part that the justices of the peace
and auxiliary justices of the peace shall be
JESUS
P.
MORFE, plaintiff-appellee,
vs.
AMELITO R. MUTUC, as Executive Secretary, ET
AL., defendants-appellants.
FERNANDO, J.:
Congress in 1960 enacted the Anti-Graft and Corrupt
Practices Act 1 to deter public officials and employees
from committing acts of dishonesty and improve the
Nothing can be clearer therefore than that the AntiGraft Act of 1960 like the earlier statute 32 was
precisely aimed at curtailing and minimizing the
opportunities for official corruption and maintaining a
standard of honesty in the public service. It is
intended to further promote morality in public
administration. A public office must indeed be a public
trust. Nobody can cavil at its objective; the goal to be
pursued commands the assent of all. The conditions
then prevailing called for norms of such character.
The times demanded such a remedial device.
The statute was framed with that end in view. It is
comprehensive in character, sufficiently detailed and
explicit to make clear to all and sundry what practices
were prohibited and penalized. More than that, an
effort was made, so evident from even a cursory
perusal thereof, to avoid evasions and plug loopholes.
One such feature is the challenged section. Thereby it
becomes much more difficult by those disposed to
take advantage of their positions to commit acts of
graft and corruption.
While in the attainment of such public good, no
infringement of constitutional rights is permissible,
there must be a showing, clear, categorical, and
undeniable, that what the Constitution condemns, the
statute allows. More specifically, since that is the only
question raised, is that portion of the statute requiring
periodical submission of assets and liabilities, after an
officer or employee had previously done so upon
assuming office, so infected with infirmity that it
cannot be upheld as valid?
Or, in traditional terminology, is this requirement a
valid exercise of the police power? In the aforesaid
Ermita-Malate
Hotel
decision, 33 there
is
a
reaffirmation of its nature and scope as embracing the
power to prescribe regulations to promote the health,
morals, education, good order, safety, or the general
welfare of the people. It has been negatively put forth
by Justice Malcolm as "that inherent and plenary
power in the state which enables it to prohibit all
may
constitute
evidence
of
guilt
or
innocence. 77 Moreover, there can be no search or
seizure of his house, papers or effects for the purpose
of locating incriminatory matter. 78
In a declaratory action proceeding then, the objection
based on the guaranty against self-incrimination is far
from decisive. It is well to note what Justice Tuason
stated: "What the above inhibition seeks to [prevent]
is
compulsory
disclosure
of
incriminating
facts." 79 Necessarily then, the protection it affords will
have to await, in the language of Justice J. B. L.
Reyes, the existence of actual cases, "be they
criminal, civil or administrative." 80 Prior to such a
stage, there is no pressing need to pass upon the
validity of the fear sincerely voiced that there is an
infringement of the non-incrimination clause. What
was said in an American State decision is of
relevance. In that case, a statutory provision requiring
any person operating a motor vehicle, who knows that
injury has been caused a person or property, to stop
and give his name, residence, and his license number
to the injured party or to a police officer was sustained
against the contention that the information thus
exacted may be used as evidence to establish his
connection with the injury and therefore compels him
to incriminate himself. As was stated in the opinion: "If
the law which exacts this information is invalid,
because such information, although in itself no
evidence of guilt, might possibly lead to a charge of
crime against the informant, then all police regulations
which involve identification may be questioned on the
same ground. We are not aware of any constitutional
provision designed to protect a man's conduct from
judicial inquiry or aid him in fleeing from justice. But,
even if a constitutional right be involved, it is not
necessary to invalidate the statute to secure its
protection. If, in this particular case, the constitutional
privilege justified the refusal to give the information
exacted by the statute, that question can be raised in
the defense to the pending prosecution. Whether it
would avail, we are not called upon to decide in this
proceeding." 81
ALFREDO
L.
AZARCON, petitioner,
vs. SANDIGANBAYAN, PEOPLE OF THE
PHILIPPINES
and
JOSE
C.
BATAUSA, respondents.
DECISION
PANGANIBAN, J.:
Does the Sandiganbayan have jurisdiction over
a private individual who is charged with malversation
of public funds as a principal after the said individual
had been designated by the Bureau of Internal
Revenue as a custodian of distrained property? Did
such accused become a public officer and therefore
subject to the graft courts jurisdiction as a
consequence of such designation by the BIR?
These are the main questions in the instant
petition for review of respondent Sandiganbayans
Decision[1] in Criminal Case No. 14260 promulgated
on March 8, 1994, convicting petitioner of
malversation of public funds and property, and
Resolution[2] dated June 20, 1994, denying his motion
for new trial or reconsideration thereof.
the
formers
premises.[4] From
this
set
circumstances arose the present controversy.
Kind of property
---
Motor number
---
E120-229598
Chassis No.
---
SPZU50-1772440
Number of CXL
---
Color
---
Blue
The Facts
Petitioner Alfredo Azarcon owned and operated
an earth-moving business, hauling dirt and ore. [3] His
services were contracted by the Paper Industries
Corporation of the Philippines (PICOP) at its
concession
in
Mangagoy,
Surigao
del
Sur.Occasionally, he engaged the services of subcontractors like Jaime Ancla whose trucks were left at
of
Owned By
---
the same having been this day seized and left in (my)
possession
pending
investigation
by
the
Commissioner of Internal Revenue or his duly
authorized representative. (I) further promise that (I)
will faithfully keep, preserve, and, to the best of (my)
ability, protect said goods, articles, and things seized
from defacement, demarcation, leakage, loss, or
destruction in any manner; that (I) will neither alter nor
remove, nor permit others to alter or remove or
dispose of the same in any manner without the
express authority of the Commissioner of Internal
Revenue; and that (I) will produce and deliver all of
said goods, articles, and things upon the order of any
court of the Philippines, or upon demand of the
Commissioner of Internal Revenue or any authorized
officer or agent of the Bureau of Internal Revenue.[6]
Subsequently, Alfredo Azarcon wrote a letter
dated November 21, 1985 to the BIRs Regional
Director for Revenue Region 10 B, Butuan City stating
that
x x x while I have made representations to retain
possession of the property and signed a receipt of the
same, it appears now that Mr. Jaime Ancla intends to
cease his operations with us. This is evidenced by the
fact that sometime in August, 1985 he surreptitiously
withdrew his equipment from my custody. x x x In this
connection, may I therefore formally inform you that it
is my desire to immediately relinquish whatever
responsibilities I have over the above-mentioned
property by virtue of the receipt I have signed. This
cancellation shall take effect immediately. x x x .[7]
Incidentally, the petitioner reported the taking of the
truck to the security manager of PICOP, Mr. Delfin
Panelo, and requested him to prevent this truck from
being taken out of the PICOP concession. By the time
the order to bar the trucks exit was given, however, it
was too late.[8]
Regional Director Batausa responded in a letter
dated May 27, 1986, to wit:
An analysis of the documents executed by you
reveals that while you are (sic) in possession of the
filed by petitioner on
ground that the
jurisdiction over the
he was not a public
the Sandiganbayan
In case private individuals are charged as coprincipals, accomplices or accessories with the public
officers or employees, including those employed in
government-owned or controlled corporations, they
shall be tried jointly with said public officers and
employees.
x x x x x x x x x.
The foregoing provisions unequivocally specify
the only instances when the Sandiganbayan will have
jurisdiction over a private individual, i.e. when the
complaint charges the private individual either as a
co-principal, accomplice or accessory of a public
officer or employee who has been charged with a
crime within its jurisdiction.
Azarcon: A Public Officer or A Private Individual?
The Information does not charge petitioner
Azarcon of being a co-principal, accomplice or
accessory to a public officer committing an offense
under the Sandiganbayans jurisdiction. Thus, unless
petitioner be proven a public officer, the
Sandiganbayan will have no jurisdiction over the
crime charged. Article 203 of the RPC determines
who are public officers:
of public
xxxxxxxxx
The constructive distraint of personal property
shall be effected by requiring the taxpayer or
any person having possession or control of such
property to sign a receipt covering the property
distrained and obligate himself to preserve the
same intact and unaltered and not to dispose of
the same in any manner whatever without the
express authority of the Commissioner.
xxxxxxxxx
However, we find no provision in the NIRC
constituting such person a public officer by reason of
such requirement. The BIRs power authorizing a
private individual to act as a depositary cannot be
stretched to include the power to appoint him as a
public officer. The prosecution argues that Article 222
Davide,
Jr.,
records. The
reproduced:
material
portions
are
hereunder
seasonal
personnel.
JUSTICE ESCAREAL:
Q What is 460?
JUSTICE BALAJADIA:
What is the translation now?
WITNESS:
A And he said disregard the excess and I
will just get the P200,000.00. (Emphasis
ours.)
Q When?
PROS. CAOILI:
Q What does he mean by that if you know?
A June 6 Wednesday.
A I do not know sir.
He just said, I will get the P200,000.00 and
tell it to your boss. (Emphasis ours.)
JUSTICE BALAJADIA:
Q What is P200,000.00?
A It is Two Hundred Thousand Pesos.
PROS. CAOILI:
JUSTICE BALAJADIA:
No basis.
JUSTICE ESCAREAL:
ATTY. JIMENEZ:
But there is no mention of Preclaro specifically.
JUSTICE ESCAREAL:
ATTY. CAOILI:
ATTY. JIMENEZ:
JUSTICE ESCAREAL:
PROS. CAOILI:
COURT STENOGRAPHER:
Reading back the question as ordered by the
Court.
WITNESS:
A He asked me if there
was express teller. I told
him I do not know then he
asked me whether it is
possible to deposit at the
Express Teller at that time.
I told him I don't know
because I have no express
teller card and he asked
me how am I going to
arrange, how was it
arranged if I will bring it,
can I bring it. Then I told
him that it was placed in
two envelopes consisting
of 500 Peso bills and then
he said "Okay na yan." 31
The failure of the NBI to take photographs of the
actual turn-over of the money to petitioner is not fatal
to the People's cause. The transaction was witnessed
by several people, among whom were Engr. Resoso,
Mr. Sta. Maria Jr. and the NBI agents whose
testimonies on the circumstances before, during and
after the turn-over are consistent, logical and credible.
According to NBI Agent Francisco Balanban Sr., they
purposely took no photographs of the actual turn-over
so as not to alert and scare off the petitioner. During
cross-examination Agent Balanban Jr. stated:
xxx xxx xxx
Q Now, of course, this entrapment
operation, you made certain preparation
to make sure that you would be able to
gather evidence in support of the
entrapment?
A Yes sir.
xxx xxx xxx
Q From the beginning to the end, that
was the purpose?
A At the time of the arrest sir.
ATTY. JIMENEZ:
From the time of the handing over of the
envelopes until the entrapment would
have been terminated?
A No sir we plan to take the photograph
only during the arrest because if we
take photographs he would be alerted
during the handing of the envelopes.
(Emphasis ours.)
Q So you did not intend to take
photographs of the act of handing of the
envelopes to the suspect?
Q JUSTICE ESCAREAL:
JUSTICE ESCAREAL:
ATTY. JIMENEZ:
PROS. CAOILI:
A Yes sir.
Q As a matter of fact you even brought
photographer for the purpose?
ATTY. JIMENEZ:
A Yes sir.
ATTY. JIMENEZ:
We admit that the accused is the one
examined by the witness.
ATTY. CAOILI:
Did you prepare the result of the examination
in writing?
A Yes sir.
PROS. CAOILI:
Showing to you Physic Examination No. 90961 which for purposes of identification has
already been marked as Exh. H what relation
has this have with the report that you
mentioned a while ago?
A This is the same report that I prepared sir.
Q How did you conduct such flourescent
examination?
A The left and right hands of the accused
were placed under the ultra violet lamp sir.
Q What was the result?
A It gave a . . . under the ultra violent lamp
the palmer hands of the suspect gave
positive result for the presence of flourescent
powder.
Q What palmar hands?
A And also the clothing, consisting of the tshirts and the pants were examined. Under
the ultra violet lamp the presence of the
flourescent powder of the t-shirts and pants
cannot be seen or distinguished because the
fibers or the material of the cloth under the
ultra violet lamp was flouresce.
Q Please tell the Court why the t-shirts and
pants under the ultra violent lamp was
flouresce?
A The materials or the fibers of the clothings
it could have been dyed with flourescent
dyes sir.34
xxx xxx xxx
What we find improbable and contrary to human
experience is petitioner's claim that he was set up by
Engr. Sta. Maria Sr. and Engr. Resoso for no other
purpose but revenge on account, for petitioner's
failure to recommend the Sta. Maria Construction to
perform the extra electrical works. 35
The Sandiganbayan has aptly ruled on this matter,
thus:
For another, the claim of accused that there
was ill-will on the part of the construction
company is hardly plausible. It is highly
improbable for the company to embark on a
malicious prosecution of an innocent person
for the simple reason that such person had
recommended the services of another
construction firm. And it is extremely
impossible for such company to enlist the
cooperation and employ the services of the
government's chief investigative agency for
such an anomalous undertaking. It is more in
of
the
E.
OF
THE
DECISION
PUNO, J.:
A law may not be constitutionally infirm but its
application to a particular party may be
unconstitutional. This is the submission of the
petitioner who invokes the equal protection clause of
the Constitution in his bid to be excluded from the
charge of plunder filed against him by the respondent
Ombudsman.
The antecedent facts are as follows:
In November 2000, as an offshoot of the
impeachment proceedings against Joseph Ejercito
Estrada, then President of the Republic of the
Philippines, five criminal complaints against the
former President and members of his family, his
associates, friends and conspirators were filed with
the respondent Office of the Ombudsman.
On April 4, 2001, the respondent Ombudsman
issued a Joint Resolution[1] finding probable cause
warranting the filing with the Sandiganbayan of
several criminal Informations against the former
President and the other respondents therein. One of
the Informations was for the crime of plunder under
Republic Act No. 7080 and among the respondents
was herein petitioner Jose Jinggoy Estrada, then
mayor of San Juan, Metro Manila.
The Information was amended and filed on April
18, 2001. Docketed as Criminal Case No. 26558, the
case was assigned to respondent Third Division of the
Sandiganbayan. The arraignment of the accused was
AMENDED INFORMATION
The undersigned Ombudsman Prosecutor and
OIC-Director, EPIB Office of the Ombudsman,
hereby accuses former PRESIDENT OF THE
PHILIPPINES, Joseph Ejercito Estrada a.k.a.
ASIONG SALONGA AND a.k.a JOSE VELARDE,
together with Jose Jinggoy Estrada, Charlie Atong
Ang, Edward Serapio, Yolanda T. Ricaforte, Alma
Alfaro, JOHN
DOE
a.k.a. Eleuterio
[P3,233,104,173.17] AND
DEPOSITING THE SAME UNDER HIS
ACCOUNT NAME JOSE VELARDE
AT THE EQUITABLE-PCI BANK.
CONTRARY TO LAW.
Manila for Quezon City, Philippines, 18 April 2001[12]
Petitioners contention that R.A. No. 7080 is
unconstitutional as applied to him is principally
perched on the premise that the Amended Information
charged him with only one act or one offense which
cannot constitute plunder. He then assails the denial
of his right to bail.
Petitioners premise is patently false. A careful
examination of the Amended Information will show
that it is divided into three (3) parts: (1) the first
paragraph charges former President Joseph E.
Estrada with the crime of plunder together with
petitioner Jose Jinggoy Estrada, Charlie Atong Ang,
Edward Serapio, Yolanda Ricaforte and others; (2) the
second paragraph spells out in general terms how the
accused conspired in committing the crime of plunder;
and (3) the following four sub-paragraphs (a) to (d)
describe in detail the predicate acts constitutive of the
crime of plunder pursuant to items (1) to (6) of R.A.
No. 7080, and state the names of the accused who
committed each act.
Pertinent to the case at bar is the predicate
act alleged in sub-paragraph (a) of the Amended
Information which is of receiving or collecting,
directly or indirectly, on several instances, money in
the aggregate amount of P545,000,000.00 for illegal
gambling in the form of gift, share, percentage,
kickback or any form of pecuniary benefit x x x. In this
sub-paragraph (a), petitioner, in conspiracy with
former President Estrada, is charged with the act of
receiving or collecting money from illegal gambling
amounting to P545 million. Contrary to petitioners
posture, the allegation is that he received or collected
money
from
illegal
gambling on
several
BENITO
CODILLA,
ET
AL., petitioners,
vs.
JOSE L. MARTINEZ, ETC., ET AL., respondents.
BAUTISTA ANGELO, J.:
On January 24, 1956, Hermenegildo C. Baloyo,
mayor of Tagum, Davao, left for Negros Occidental to
attend to a sick brother. Thereupon, he designated
the vice-mayor to act in his place effective January
25, 1956 until further advice on his part. The vicemayor in turn fell sick of certain lung trouble in view of
which he designated ranking councilor Macario
683.
(McQuillin,
Municipal
Corporations, supra footnote No. 11, p. 383.)
Another factor that may be invoked in favor of the
validity of the official actuation of Acting Mayor
Martinez is the fact that all his official acts done under
his designation were subsequently endorsed and
ratified by the incumbent mayor when he returned to
office. This ratification served to cure any legal
infirmity the acts of Acting Mayor Martinez may have
suffered because of his irregular designation.
This brings us to the question whether the termination
of employment of petitioners as municipal policemen
was made contrary to the law which safeguards the
rights of an employee to his office in the government
service. While it may be gleaned from the surrounding
circumstances that the hand of politics has intervened
in the separation of petitioner who apparently had
been for sometime serving the government as
policemen during the previous administration, we
cannot escape the fact that they were merely given
temporary appointments for the reason that they do
not have civil service eligibility thus making their
status as employee wholly dependent upon the grace
of the ruling power. And this we say because, as we
ruled in a series of cases, "A temporary appointment