Case Summary (G.R. No. L-79974)
Groups of Officers under Section 16, Article VII
Section 16 divides Presidential appointees into four categories:
- Heads of executive departments, ambassadors, public ministers and consuls, officers of the armed forces from colonel or naval captain rank, and “other officers whose appointments are vested in [the President] in this Constitution.”
- All other officers of the Government whose appointments are not otherwise provided by law.
- Officers whom the President may be authorized by law to appoint.
- Officers lower in rank whose appointment Congress may vest in the President alone, in the courts, or in heads of departments, agencies, commissions, or boards.
Historical Constitutional Background
• Under the 1935 Constitution, nearly all Presidential appointees required Commission on Appointments confirmation, including bureau heads.
• The 1973 Constitution vested virtually all appointment power in the President (parliamentary model).
• The 1987 Constitution “struck a middle ground,” limiting confirmation to the first category of officers while restoring broader executive appointment authority without legislative confirmation for the other categories.
1986 Constitutional Commission Deliberations
Deliberations reveal deliberate exclusion of “heads of bureaus” from confirmation, and a conscious narrowing of Commission on Appointments’ scope:
• Deletion of “and bureaus” from the list of officers requiring confirmation.
• Separation of nomination-and-confirmation language in the first sentence from mere “appointment” language in the second sentence, underscoring the framers’ intent that certain officers be appointed without confirmation.
Interpretation of “Nomination” and “Appointment” Language
The Court emphasized the textual distinction:
• First sentence: “shall nominate and, with the consent of the Commission on Appointments, appoint”—confirmation required.
• Second sentence: “shall also appoint”—no nomination or confirmation language, indicating appointments may be made directly by the President.
Role of the Commission on Appointments
The Commission’s confirmation power applies exclusively to officers enumerated in the first sentence. All other Presidential appointees under the second, third, and fourth categories may be appointed without prior confirmation.
Statutory Authorization of Customs Commissioner Appointment
• Republic Act No. 1937 originally empowered the President to appoint the Customs Commissioner only with Commission on Appointments consent under the 1935 Constitution.
• As amended by PD No. 34 (1972), Section 601 vests appointment of the Commission
Case Syllabus (G.R. No. L-79974)
Facts
- Petitioners, taxpayers, lawyers, IBP members and Constitutional Law professors, sought prohibition to enjoin:
- Respondent Mison from exercising functions as Customs Commissioner;
- Respondent Carague from disbursing Mison’s salaries and emoluments.
- Ground: Mison’s appointment lacked confirmation by the Commission on Appointments (CA) and is thus unconstitutional.
- Respondents defended that a CA confirmation was not required.
- The Court admitted the petition and granted leave for the Commission on Appointments to intervene.
Procedural History
- Petition for prohibition filed under Rule 65.
- Procedural objections as to remedy and standing set aside in the public interest.
- Intervention by the Commission on Appointments; comment and reply were filed.
- Oral arguments held on December 8, 1987.
- En banc decision promulgated December 17, 1987.
Relevant Constitutional Provisions
- 1987 Constitution, Article VII, Section 16:
- First sentence: President shall nominate and, with CA consent, appoint heads of executive departments, ambassadors, public ministers, consuls, senior military officers (colonel/naval captain), and other officers vested in him by Constitution.
- Second sentence: President “shall also appoint all other officers of the Government whose appointments are not otherwise provided for by law, and those whom he may be authorized by law to appoint.”
- Third sentence: Congress may by law vest appointment of “other officers lower in rank” in President alone, in courts, or in department/agency/board heads.
- Recess appointments clause.
Historical Background
- 1935 Constitution, Art. VII, Sec. 10: Nearly all presidential appointments (including bureau heads) required CA confirmation.
- 1973 Constitution: Gave President nearly absolute appointment power; CA check removed.
- Framers of the 1987 Constitution sought a “middle ground”:
- Restore CA confirmation for top-level appointees (first group).
- Leave other appointments with the President (second, third and fourth groups) without CA confirmation.
Classification of Presidential Appointments (Art. VII, Sec. 16)
- Group 1: Heads of executive departments, ambassadors, ministers, consu