Case Digest (G.R. No. 129118)
Facts:
Agripino A. De Guzman, Jr. et al. v. Commission on Elections, G.R. No. 129118, July 19, 2000, Supreme Court En Banc, Purisima, J., writing for the Court. Petitioners are numerous City and Municipal Election Officers who challenged the constitutionality of Section 44 of Republic Act No. 8189 (The Voter's Registration Act of 1996). The respondent is the Commission on Elections (COMELEC), which promulgated implementing resolutions and directives to give effect to Section 44.RA 8189 was enacted on June 10, 1996 and approved on June 11, 1996. Section 44 provided that no Election Officer shall hold office in a particular city or municipality for more than four years and mandated automatic reassignment outside the original congressional district for those who had served at least four years. To implement Section 44, the COMELEC issued Resolution Nos. 97-0002 and 97-0610 and subsequent directives reassigning the petitioners to different stations.
Aggrieved by the reassignments, petitioners filed a petition for certiorari and prohibition with an urgent prayer for a writ of preliminary injunction and temporary restraining order (Rule 65 remedies), contending that Section 44 was unconstitutional on multiple grounds: (1) violation of the equal protection clause; (2) infringement of security of tenure; (3) deprivation of property without due process; (4) impairment of the COMELEC’s independence and authority to appoint and manage its personnel; (5) violation of the single-subject/title requirement under Article VI, Section 26(1) of the 1987 Constitution; and (6) noncompliance with the constitutional requirement of readings and distribution under Article VI, Section 26(2). The petition reached the Supr...(Subscriber-Only)
Issues:
- Does Section 44 of RA 8189 violate the Equal Protection Clause of the 1987 Constitution?
- Does Section 44 of RA 8189 violate the constitutional guarantee of security of tenure of civil servants?
- Does Section 44 of RA 8189 effect a deprivation of property without due process of law?
- Does Section 44 of RA 8189 undermine the COMELEC’s constitutional independence and authority to appoint, designate, reassign, or transfer its officials and employees?
- Does Section 44 of RA 8189 contravene the single-subject and title requirement of Article VI, Section 26(1) of the 1987 Constitution?
- Was Section 44 of RA 8189 enacted in violation of the constitutional requirement of three readings on separate days and distribution of...(Subscriber-Only)
Ruling:
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Ratio:
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Doctrine:
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