Case Digest (A.M. No. RTJ-92-897)
Facts:
Quiterio Hermo v. Hon. Rosalio G. Dela Rosa, A.M. No. RTJ-92-897, November 24, 1998, the Supreme Court En Banc, Quisumbing, J., writing for the Court. The case is an administrative proceeding against respondent judge Hon. Rosalio G. Dela Rosa, then presiding judge of Branch 28, Regional Trial Court, Manila, stemming from irregularities in the naturalization proceedings of Sorsogon governor Juan G. Frivaldo (SP Proc. No. 91-58645).On September 20, 1991 Frivaldo filed a petition for naturalization before Branch 28. In an order dated October 7, 1991 respondent set the hearing for March 16, 1992 and directed publication of the order and the petition in the Official Gazette and a newspaper of general circulation and posting at the Clerk of Court’s office; Frivaldo caused publication in the Philippine Star. On January 20, 1992 Frivaldo moved to advance the hearing because he planned to run in the May 11, 1992 elections; respondent granted the motion and reset the hearing to February 21, 1992. It does not appear the order advancing the hearing was published or posted. On February 27, 1992 respondent rendered a decision granting Frivaldo’s petition and, on the same day, Frivaldo took his oath of allegiance.
Petitioner Quiterio Hermo learned of the proceedings when his friend’s secretary, Alma Catu, inquired at Branch 28 on March 9, 1992 and discovered that the petition had already been decided. Hermo filed a complaint-affidavit dated March 16, 1992 with the Court Administrator charging respondent with gross ignorance of the law and malfeasance, and alleging specifically: non-publication in the Official Gazette; resetting the hearing within six months of the last publication (last published November 21, 1991); allowance of decision and oath on the same date as the hearing; allowing the oath before the two-year executory period; failure to require affidavits of two disinterested persons; allowance despite a libel conviction; and an apparent cover-up when inquiries were rebuffed.
Three other petitions (G.R. Nos. 104654, 105715, 105735) concerning Frivaldo’s reacquisition of Filipino citizenship were consolidated and decided in Republic v. De la Rosa, 232 SCRA 785 (1994). By order of June 15, 1993 this Court held Hermo’s administrative complaint in abeyance pending resolution of the main cases; after the De la Rosa decision Hermo moved to resolve his complaint. The case was referred to the Office of the Court Administrator on February 18, 1997; the OCA reported on April 16, 1997.
In Republic v. De la Rosa this Court found the naturalization proceedings "full of procedural flaws" and concluded the trial court never acquired jurisdiction because of failure to comply with publication and posting requirements, hearing within six months of publication, allowing oath before finality or the two-year period, and other lapses. Applying those conclusions here, the Court in this administrative matter found respondent’s errors patent and ...(Subscriber-Only)
Issues:
- Did respondent judge commit serious procedural lapses or administrative liability in the handling of Frivaldo’s petition for naturalization?
- Did the irregularities in the naturalization proceedings deprive the trial court of jurisdiction and render the proceedings null and void?
- Is the clerk of court’s failure to publish or post the petition necessarily imp...(Subscriber-Only)
Ruling:
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Ratio:
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Doctrine:
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