G.R. No. 180050 Case Digest

G.R. No. 180050, February 10, 2010

Rodolfo G. Navarro, Victor Bernal and Rene Medina

vs Exec. Sec. Eduardo Ermita

Facts:

April 3, 2002, the Office of the President advised the Sangguniang Panlalawigan of Surigao del Norte to deficient population in the propsed Province of Dinagat Islands.

Consequently, Prov. Gov't. of Surigao del Norte conducted a special census with the assitanc eof the NSo District Census Coordinator to determine the population of Dinagat. The census yield 371,576 inhabitants. NSO, however, did not certify the result of the special census.

Bureau of Local Government Finance certified that the average annual income of Dinagat was 82M . The land area is 802.12 sqkm.

Later, Congress passed the bill for the creation of the Province of Dinagat which was approved by then President GMA. Then a plebiscite was ratified and approved by the majority. Consequently, new set of provincial officials took their oath of office following their appointment by PGMA, another set were then elected in the election later.

Petitioners aver that they are taxpayers and residents of the Province of Surigao del Norte, they are Vice-gov and members of the provincial board. They allege that the creation of the Dinagat Islands as a new province is an illegal act of Congress and unjustly deprives the people of Surigao del Norte a large chunk of its territory, IRA and rich resources from the area.

They also claim that the creation is not valid because it failed to comply with the population and land area requirement.

Ruling:

Petition is granted. SEC. 461. Requisites for Creation. -- (a) A province may be created if it has an average annual income, as certified by the Department of Finance, of not less than Twenty million pesos (P20,000,000.00) based on 1991 constant prices and either of the following requisites:

(i) a contiguous territory of at least two thousand (2,000) square kilometers, as certified by the Lands Management Bureau; or

(ii) a population of not less than two hundred fifty thousand (250,000) inhabitants as certified by the National Statistics Office:

Provided, That, the creation thereof shall not reduce the land area, population, and income of the original unit or units at the time of said creation to less than the minimum requirements prescribed herein.

(b) The territory need not be contiguous if it comprises two (2) or more islands or is separated by a chartered city or cities which do not contribute to the income of the province.

(c) The average annual income shall include the income accruing to the general fund, exclusive of special funds, trust funds, transfers, and non-recurring income.

The requirements for the creation of a province contained in Sec. 461 of the Local Government Code are clear, plain and unambiguous, and its literal application does not result in absurdity or injustice. Hence, the provision in Art. 9(2) of the IRR exempting a proposed province composed of one or more islands from the land-area requirement cannot be considered an executive construction of the criteria prescribed by the Local Government Code. It is an extraneous provision not intended by the Local Government Code and, therefore, is null and void.

R.A. No. 9355 expressly states that the Province of Dinagat Islands "contains an approximate land area of eighty thousand two hundred twelve hectares (80,212 has.) or 802.12 sq. km., more or less, including Hibuson Island and approximately forty-seven (47) islets x x x."33 R.A. No. 9355, therefore, failed to comply with the land area requirement of 2,000 square kilometers.

The Province of Dinagat Islands also failed to comply with the population requirement of not less than 250,000 inhabitants as certified by the NSO. Based on the 2000 Census of Population conducted by the NSO, the population of the Province of Dinagat Islands as of May 1, 2000 was only 106,951.

Although the Provincial Government of Surigao del Norte conducted a special census of population in Dinagat Islands in 2003, which yielded a population count of 371,000, the result was not certified by the NSO as required by the Local Government Code.34 Moreover, respondents failed to prove that with the population count of 371,000, the population of the original unit (mother Province of Surigao del Norte) would not be reduced to less than the minimum requirement prescribed by law at the time of the creation of the new province.

Petitioners contend that the creation of the Province of Dinagat Islands is an act of gerrymandering on the ground that House Bill No. 884 excluded Siargao Island, with a population of 118,534 inhabitants, from the new province for complete political dominance by Congresswoman Glenda Ecleo-Villaroman. This is unsubstantiated.

"Gerrymandering" is a term employed to describe an apportionment of representative districts so contrived as to give an unfair advantage to the party in power. Fr. Joaquin G. Bernas, a member of the 1986 Constitutional Commission, defined "gerrymandering" as the formation of one legislative district out of separate territories for the purpose of favoring a candidate or a party. The Constitution proscribes gerrymandering, as it mandates each legislative district to comprise, as far as practicable, a contiguous, compact and adjacent territory.

As stated by the Office of the Solicitor General, the Province of Dinagat Islands consists of one island and about 47 islets closely situated together, without the inclusion of separate territories. It is an unsubstantiated allegation that the province was created to favor Congresswoman Glenda Ecleo-Villaroman.