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Issue/s: Ruling:
Is RA 9189 [Overseas Absentee Voting Act of 2003], valid & No
constitutional?
Rationale/Analysis/Legal Basis:
Contrary to petitioner’s claim that Section 5(d) circumvents the Constitution, Congress
enacted the law prescribing a system of overseas absentee voting in compliance with the
constitutional mandate. Such mandate expressly requires that Congress provide a system
of absentee voting that necessarily presupposes that the “qualified citizen of the
Philippines abroad” is not physically present in the country.
The petition was partly GRANTED. The following portions of R.A. No. 9189 are declared
VOID for being UNCONSTITUTIONAL:
17. a) The phrase in the first sentence of the first paragraph of Section 17.1, to wit:
“subject to the approval of the Joint Congressional Oversight Committee;”
18. b) The portion of the last paragraph of Section 17.1, to wit: “only upon review and
approval of the Joint Congressional Oversight Committee;”
19. c) The second sentence of the first paragraph of Section 19, to wit: “The
Implementing Rules and Regulations shall be submitted to the Joint Congressional
Oversight Committee created by virtue of this Act for prior approval;” and
20. d) The second sentence in the second paragraph of Section 25, to wit: “It shall
review, revise, amend and approve the Implementing Rules and Regulations
promulgated by the Commission” of the same law;
for being repugnant to Section 1, Article IX-A of the Constitution mandating the
independence of constitutional commission, such as COMELEC.
Pursuant to Section 30 of R.A. No. 9189, the rest of the provisions of said law continues to
be in full force and effect.