MANILA, Philippines - The 2 recent directives issued by President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III revoking his predecessor’s appointments and promotions have been questioned before the Supreme Court for allegedly being unconstitutional.
Assistant Justice Secretary Jose Arturo de Castro and Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority Board of Directors member Eddie Tamondong filed separate petitions on Monday, both saying Executive Order 2 (EO 2) will unnecessarily impair official processes and transactions.
Both lawyers have also asked the high court to issue a stay order.
Both officials’ cases are being studied following the issuance of Executive Order 2 on Wednesday. The order revokes the midnight appointments made on or after March 11, the antedated appointments, and appointments and promotions made during the period of 45 days prior to the May 10 elections in violation of the Omnibus Election Code.
Both claim they have not been appointed during the election ban.
De Castro was appointed Assistant Secretary on January 19, 2009 and laterally assigned to the same position, handling legislative affairs, on March 10, 2010.
For his part, Tamondong complained he was fired even if he has been with the SBMA’s board member since June 2008. He was only appointed as a regular member on March 1, 2010.
In his 83-page petition, De Castro said Executive Order 2 disregards the most sacred constitutional right guaranteeing a person’s life, liberty and property.
He said the directive “unceremoniously [deprives] civil servants of their means of livelihood, and by trampling upon their dignity through the mere issuance and media announcement…”
The officials, whose positions are being questioned, should have been given proper notice and hearing.
The presidential directive also usurps judicial powers, he said.
The nature of revoking positions can only be achieved through quo warranto proceedings, he added.
A quo warranto proceeding is an action for the usurpation of a public office or position. It can be brought in the name of the Republic of the Philippines through the Office of the Solicitor General.
Such proceedings are also lodged before the Supreme Court.
Well-earned CESO status
De Castro is also asking the high court to have Executive Order 3 nullified.
The latter revokes President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo’s Executive Order 883, which automatically vests lawyers occupying legal positions in the government executive service “who have obtained graduate degrees in law and successfully passed their bar examinations” with the rank of CESO III.
Speaking in behalf of lawyers who are similarly situated, De Castro said the order “effectively strips government lawyers of a much deserved and well-earned CESO status and renders them vulnerable to capricious and arbitrary removal by outright dismissal or replacement…”
He said there is nothing in the Constitution that allows the President to determine the legality of a previous order.
The power to check the legality of EO 883 solely belongs to the high court, he said.
He also added the order discriminates against lawyers.
De Castro also questioned the assumption of the administration that the government lawyers did not undergo a competitive examination to determine their merits.
“It is widely and globally known that the Philippine bar examination is one of the most, if not the most, difficult qualifying exams for entry into a profession,” he said.
The Bar Examination is already equivalent to the civil service examination, he added.
The issuance of EO 883 was precisely made to enhance civil service, he added
