Paras

v. COMELEC
G.R. No. 123169
4 November 1996
Francisco, J.


FACTS: A petition for recall was filed against Paras, who is the incumbent Punong
Barangay. The recall election was deferred due to Petitioners opposition that under
Sec. 74 of RA No. 7160, no recall shall take place within one year from the date of the
officials assumption to office or one year immediately preceding a regular local
election. Since the Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) election was set on the first Monday
of May 2006, no recall may be instituted.


ISSUE: Whether or not the SK election is a local election.


HELD: No. Every part of the statute must be interpreted with reference to its
context, and it must be considered together and kept subservient to its general
intent. The evident intent of Sec. 74 is to subject an elective local official to recall
once during his term, as provided in par. (a) and par. (b). The spirit, rather than the
letter of a law, determines its construction. Thus, interpreting the phrase regular
local election to include SK election will unduly circumscribe the Code for there will
never be a recall election rendering inutile the provision. In interpreting a statute,
the Court assumed that the legislature intended to enact an effective law. An
interpretation should be avoided under which a statute or provision being
construed is defeated, meaningless, inoperative or nugatory. (DEPARTURE FROM
LITERAL INTERPRETATION)

Prepared by: Frances Ann Teves