(1) "Government of the Republic of the Philippines" refers to (12) "Chartered institution" refers to any agency organized or The
d or The undisputed assertion of the Office of the Solicitor General is
the corporate governmental entity through which the functions
of government are exercised throughout the Philippines,
including, save as the contrary appears from the context, the
various arms through which political authority is made effective
in the Philippines, whether pertaining to the autonomous
regions, the provincial, city, municipal or barangay subdivisions
or other forms of local government.
(2) "National Government" refers to the entire machinery of the
central government, as distinguished from the different forms of
local governments.
(3) "Local Government" refers to the political subdivisions
established by or in accordance with the Constitution and
possessed of substantial control over its own affairs. In a unitary
system of government, it is an intra-sovereign subdivision of one
sovereign nation, not intended to be an imperium in imperio
[empire within an empire)]
(4) "Agency of the Government" refers to any of the various
units of the Government, including a department, bureau, office,
instrumentality, or government-owned or controlled
corporations, or a local government or a distinct unit therein.
(5) "National agency" refers to a unit of the National
Government.
(6) "Local agency" refers to a local government or a distinct unit
therein.
(7) "Department" refers to an executive department created by
law. For purposes of Book IV, this shall include any
instrumentality, as herein defined, having or assigned the rank of
a department, regardless of its name or designation.
(8) "Bureau" refers to any principal subdivision or unit of any
department. For purposes of Book IV, this shall include any
principal subdivision or unit of any instrumentality given or
assigned the rank of a bureau, regardless of actual name or
designation, as in the case of department-wide regional offices.
(9) "Office" refers, within the framework of governmental
organization, to any major functional unit of a department or
bureau including regional offices. It may also refer to any
position held or occupied by individual persons, whose functions
are defined by law or regulation.
(10) "Instrumentality" refers to any agency of the National
Government, not integrated within the department framework
vested within special functions or jurisdiction by law, endowed
with some if not all corporate powers, administering special
funds, and enjoying operational autonomy, usually through a
charter. This term includes regulatory agencies, chartered
institutions and government-owned or controlled corporations.
(11) "Regulatory agency" refers to any agency expressly vested
with jurisdiction to regulate, administer or adjudicate matters
affecting substantial rights and interests of private persons, the
principal powers of which are exercised by a collective body,
such as a commission, board or council.
operating under a special charter, and vested by law with that the decision to relieve Ploteña was reached after
functions relating to specific constitutional policies or consultations with the Regional Directors and Police
objectives. This term includes the state universities and colleges Superintendents relative to his performance in the face of the
and the monetary authority of the State. (13) "Government- worsening peace and order and insurgency situation in Bacolod
owned or controlled corporation" refers to any agency City. The PC/INP Commander's power of control encompasses
organized as a stock or non-stock corporation, vested with such a transfer. There is thus no need to discuss further the issue
functions relating to public needs whether governmental or of due process. Moreover, Executive Order 1040 8 directly
proprietary in nature, and owned by the Government directly or placed the National Police Commission under the office of the
through its instrumentalities either wholly, or, where applicable President. The Commission exercises administrative control and
as in the case of stock corporations, to the extent of at least fifty- supervision over all units of the INP force throughout the
one (51) per cent of its capital stock: Provided, That country. Questions therefore of propriety of a transfer or relief of
government-owned or controlled corporations may be further policemen have to be threshed out before said body whose
categorized by the Department of the Budget, the Civil Service decisions are appealable to the office of the President. Were it
Commission, and the Commission on Audit for purposes of the not for the legal issue presented, the petition before the lower
exercise and discharge of their respective powers, functions and court would have been premature for failure to exhaust
responsibilities with respect to such corporations. (14) "Officer" administrative remedies.
as distinguished from "clerk" or "employee", refers to a person
whose duties, not being of a clerical or manual nature, involves
the exercise of discretion in the performance of the functions of
the government. When used with reference to a person having
authority to do a particular act or perform a particular function in
the exercise of governmental power, "officer" includes any
government employee, agent or body having authority to do the
act or exercise that function. (15) "Employee", when used with
reference to a person in the public service, includes any person
in the service of the government or any of its agencies, divisions,
subdivisions or instrumentalities.
Case: PD 531 7 which integrated the police departments of
Negros Occidental provides in Section 6 thereof that in case of
conflict between the exercise of administrative control and
supervision on the one hand and operational control, direction
and supervision on the other hand, the latter shall prevail. Be
that as it may, the operative word here is control, i.e. who has
control? The local executives have general and operational
supervision over local police units, but no power of
administrative supervision or control over them; hence, absence
of recommendation from the local chief executive does not
invalidate the replacement of a Station Commander made by the
INP Director General. At best, the participation of the local chief
executive is recommendatory but the power to relieve or
reassign a city INP Station Commander is lodged with the INP
Director General under existing laws. To conclude, as the
Bacolod RTC has done, that Ploteña replacement, transfer or
reassignment may only be done upon approval of the local chief
executive, defies organizational interests. If the RTC's position
were correct, a deadlock can ensue; an intransigent local
executive would be in a position to nullify the power of
administrative supervision and control vested by law in the PC
Chief/INP Director General.